First Trust Advisors LP Buys 25,350 Shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW - Free Report) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 215,256 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 25,350 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.15% of Lamb Weston worth $14,386,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter worth approximately $96,736,000. Continental Grain Co. acquired a new position in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,786,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in Lamb Weston by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,477,165 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $232,330,000 after acquiring an additional 735,901 shares during the last quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 697.4% in the fourth quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 350,268 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $23,408,000 after purchasing an additional 306,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter worth about $19,802,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LW has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com cut Lamb Weston from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Lamb Weston from $72.00 to $66.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $56.00 target price on Lamb Weston and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.64.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Lamb Weston stock traded down $0.77 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $52.05. 792,300 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,649,439. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.90 and a 12 month high of $89.51. The business's 50-day moving average is $53.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.48.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.23. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The company had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. Lamb Weston's payout ratio is 58.04%.

Lamb Weston Company Profile

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc produces, distributes, and markets frozen potato products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Global, Foodservice, Retail, and Other. It offers frozen potatoes, commercial ingredients, and appetizers under the Lamb Weston brand, as well as under various customer labels.