Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems trimmed its position in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 8.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,009 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 872 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 369.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 41,601 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,693,000 after acquiring an additional 32,734 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Lamb Weston by 7.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 20,974 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,358,000 after buying an additional 1,425 shares during the period. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. acquired a new position in Lamb Weston during the third quarter worth about $6,474,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Lamb Weston by 26.4% during the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,323 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 1,322 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in Lamb Weston by 98.5% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 25,848 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,673,000 after buying an additional 12,827 shares during the period. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

Shares of LW opened at $75.07 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $10.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.62, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $72.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.10. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $52.99 and a 1 year high of $111.88.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 34.33%. Lamb Weston’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $68.00 price target (up previously from $63.00) on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Monday, October 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $132.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 25th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Consumer Edge downgraded shares of Lamb Weston from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $82.22.

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.