Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW)

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders acquired 8,302 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 141% compared to the average daily volume of 3,451 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LW. Wall Street Zen raised Lamb Weston from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $69.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $57.00 price target on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lamb Weston has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $67.64.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LW traded down $1.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.89. 406,055 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,646,875. The company's 50-day moving average is $53.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.46. Lamb Weston has a 1 year low of $47.90 and a 1 year high of $83.98.

Institutional Trading of Lamb Weston

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in Lamb Weston by 63.5% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,971 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $332,000 after purchasing an additional 1,931 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 16,251 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,229,600 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $82,174,000 after buying an additional 16,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 2,050.3% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,161 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 3,014 shares during the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.