Mizuho Markets Cayman LP Acquires New Position in Lamb Weston $LW

Key Points

• Mizuho Markets Cayman LP initiated a new position in Lamb Weston, buying 159,750 shares valued at about $6.7 million in the fourth quarter, according to its SEC filing.
• Institutional interest in LW appears broad, with several hedge funds increasing stakes and about 89.56% of the stock now owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Lamb Weston reported better-than-expected quarterly results and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average price target of $48.

Mizuho Markets Cayman LP acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 159,750 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $6,692,000. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP owned about 0.12% of Lamb Weston as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LW. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 45,177.0% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,835,245 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $118,768,000 after purchasing an additional 2,828,983 shares during the last quarter. Ion Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Lamb Weston in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $84,379,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Lamb Weston by 2,682.3% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 801,708 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $33,584,000 after buying an additional 772,893 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in Lamb Weston by 46.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,150,000 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $124,872,000 after buying an additional 680,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Lamb Weston by 129.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,089,110 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $63,256,000 after buying an additional 613,829 shares during the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Lamb Weston from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $55.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $54.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Peter J. Bensen acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.45 per share, with a total value of $197,250.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 17,204 shares of the company's stock, valued at $678,697.80. This trade represents a 40.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jana Partners Management, Lp acquired 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $43.19 per share, for a total transaction of $2,159,500.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 5,398,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $233,181,946.20. This trade represents a 0.93% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought a total of 391,000 shares of company stock worth $16,270,790 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

LW opened at $43.67 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 20.41, a P/E/G ratio of 6.19 and a beta of 0.47. Lamb Weston has a 12-month low of $37.62 and a 12-month high of $67.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $42.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.49 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The business's revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.03%.

Lamb Weston Profile

Lamb Weston, traded on the NYSE under the symbol LW, is a leading global processor and supplier of frozen potato products. The company's portfolio includes a variety of potato-based items such as French fries, potato wedges, hash browns and specialty cuts tailored to the foodservice and retail grocery channels. Lamb Weston serves quick-service restaurants, full-service operators, grocery chains and food distributors, offering customized product formats, packaging solutions and seasoning options to meet evolving customer demands.

Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Eagle, Idaho, Lamb Weston has grown from a regional processor into one of the world's largest producers of frozen potato products.

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