Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Director Purchases 50,000 Shares

Key Points

• Jana Partners purchased 50,000 Lamb Weston (LW) shares on April 15 at $43.19 (~$2.16M), bringing its stake to 5,398,980 shares valued at about $233.18M; the buy follows earlier early-April purchases of 100,000, 100,000 and 136,000 shares.
• Lamb Weston beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $0.72 (vs. $0.61 est.) and revenue of $1.56B, and announced a $0.38 quarterly dividend (annualized $1.52) representing a 3.5% yield.
• Analysts have trimmed price targets and ratings (consensus "Hold", $48 target) amid share weakness; LW trades around $43.25 with a market cap near $6B and a 12‑month range of $37.62–$67.07.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) Director Jana Partners Management, Lp acquired 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $43.19 per share, for a total transaction of $2,159,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 5,398,980 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $233,181,946.20. The trade was a 0.93% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Jana Partners Management, Lp also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, April 13th, Jana Partners Management, Lp bought 100,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $42.12 per share, with a total value of $4,212,000.00.
• On Wednesday, April 8th, Jana Partners Management, Lp purchased 100,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $41.41 per share, for a total transaction of $4,141,000.00.
• On Tuesday, April 7th, Jana Partners Management, Lp purchased 136,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $40.89 per share, for a total transaction of $5,561,040.00.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

LW traded down $0.48 on Wednesday, hitting $43.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,029,717 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,190,322. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $44.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $51.05. The firm has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 0.49. Lamb Weston has a 12 month low of $37.62 and a 12 month high of $67.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.49 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 23.77%. Lamb Weston's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. Analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on LW shares. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Lamb Weston from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $48.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lamb Weston

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LW. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 191.5% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 471,886 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $19,922,000 after purchasing an additional 309,995 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in Lamb Weston by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 8,903 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 1,842 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 53.2% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 31,864 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,335,000 after buying an additional 11,063 shares in the last quarter. Walser Wealth Management Company A Ltd Liability Co purchased a new position in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth approximately $221,000. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 427.5% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 159,008 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $6,661,000 after buying an additional 128,862 shares during the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Company 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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