Lamb Weston Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:LW)

Key Points

• Lamb Weston experienced a significant increase in options trading with 9,276 put options acquired, marking a 113% rise from the average daily volume of 4,359.
• Multiple hedge funds have increased their stakes in Lamb Weston, with 89.56% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings of $0.87 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations, and has announced a dividend of $0.37 per share to be paid on November 28th.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock traders acquired 9,276 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 113% compared to the average daily volume of 4,359 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 64.2% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 537 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. Romano Brothers AND Company grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 1.4% in the first quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company now owns 15,260 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 2.0% in the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 10,971 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $585,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 4.0% in the first quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,984 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 28.7% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,165 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays boosted their target price on Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Lamb Weston in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.33.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of LW traded up $0.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $53.36. 163,568 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,205,774. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. Lamb Weston has a 1 year low of $47.87 and a 1 year high of $83.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.26, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.49. The business's 50-day moving average price is $55.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.89.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.23. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.99% and a net margin of 5.54%.The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Lamb Weston has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Lamb Weston's payout ratio is 58.96%.

About Lamb Weston

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.

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