Douglas Lane & Associates LLC Sells 88,195 Shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC trimmed its stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,021,180 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 88,195 shares during the period. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC owned 0.72% of Lamb Weston worth $68,245,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in Lamb Weston by 123.5% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 40,552 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,410,000 after buying an additional 22,409 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Lamb Weston by 23.5% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 40,321 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,336,000 after acquiring an additional 7,679 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Lamb Weston during the 2nd quarter valued at $396,000. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 2nd quarter valued at $237,000. Finally, PFG Investments LLC grew its position in Lamb Weston by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 8,875 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Lamb Weston news, Director Charles A. Blixt bought 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $63.25 per share, for a total transaction of $75,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 22,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,611.50. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Lamb Weston in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $81.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lamb Weston has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.00.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LW traded down $0.55 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $61.13. The stock had a trading volume of 1,369,956 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,286,387. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.72 billion, a PE ratio of 14.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.73. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $52.99 and a 52 week high of $110.61. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $74.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 34.33% and a net margin of 9.57%. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.45 EPS. Lamb Weston’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. This is a positive change from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.50%.

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.