Van ECK Associates Corp Cuts Stock Position in Lamb Weston $LW

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its stake in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) by 13.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 99,439 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 15,406 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.07% of Lamb Weston worth $4,294,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LW. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new position in shares of Lamb Weston during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 44.2% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 649 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 380.7% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 721 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

LW stock opened at $50.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.94 billion, a PE ratio of 24.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.47. Lamb Weston has a 1 year low of $37.62 and a 1 year high of $67.07.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 23.33% and a net margin of 4.39%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. Lamb Weston has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.950-3.250 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. Lamb Weston’s payout ratio is currently 73.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised Lamb Weston from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $52.00 price target on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Barclays increased their price objective on Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Lamb Weston from $54.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.36.

Lamb Weston Company Profile

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.