Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.24, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. Lamb Weston updated its FY 2027 guidance to 2.950-3.250 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Lamb Weston’s conference call:

• Lamb Weston said fiscal 2026 marked a meaningful turnaround, with North America stabilizing and delivering six straight quarters of volume growth, while full-year North America EBITDA margin reached 26%.
• The company generated $537 million of free cash flow in fiscal 2026, cut capital expenditures to $410 million, and returned $321 million to shareholders through dividends and buybacks.
• Management reaffirmed its Focus to Win strategy and outlined a broader strategic review of international markets, including possible M&A, partnerships, divestitures, and sharper country-cluster priorities, with more details expected at an Investor Day in early calendar 2027.
• International results remained pressured by EMEA weakness, including competitive pricing pressure, slower demand, higher freight costs tied to Middle East disruption, and startup costs from the new Argentina plant.
• For fiscal 2027, Lamb Weston guided to flat to 1% sales growth and adjusted EPS of $2.95 to $3.25, with expectations that earnings will grow faster than sales as cost savings, lower potato costs, and higher utilization offset broader inflation.

Lamb Weston Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE LW traded down $0.24 on Friday, hitting $48.94. 1,889,719 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,396,890. Lamb Weston has a twelve month low of $37.62 and a twelve month high of $67.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. The company has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $44.62 and a 200 day moving average of $44.22.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 27.4% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,824,690 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $411,558,000 after buying an additional 2,111,874 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 1.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,801,585 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $300,812,000 after buying an additional 63,865 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.5% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,286,305 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $190,869,000 after buying an additional 79,257 shares during the last quarter. BROOKFIELD Corp ON boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 29.0% during the fourth quarter. BROOKFIELD Corp ON now owns 2,226,311 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $93,260,000 after buying an additional 500,000 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,141,037 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $89,688,000 after acquiring an additional 172,165 shares during the period. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays boosted their price target on Lamb Weston from $46.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Stephens initiated coverage on Lamb Weston in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $46.00 price objective on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on Lamb Weston from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.27.

Lamb Weston News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Lamb Weston this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lamb Weston beat Wall Street estimates for both earnings and revenue in Q4, reporting $0.87 EPS versus $0.62 expected and $1.77 billion in revenue versus $1.70 billion expected. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised optimism around its outlook by guiding FY2027 revenue to $6.6 billion-$6.7 billion, above the consensus estimate of about $6.4 billion.
• Positive Sentiment: Management cited volume growth in North America as a key driver of higher sales, which suggests core demand remains healthy. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company said cost inflation and geopolitical volatility continued to weigh on international sales, limiting the strength of the overall results. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical momentum also improved after the stock crossed above its 200-day moving average, which some traders may view as a bullish signal. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: FY2027 EPS guidance of 2.95-3.25 was slightly below the consensus estimate of 3.02, which may temper enthusiasm despite the stronger revenue outlook.

About Lamb Weston

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.