Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $2.52 Million Stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 500 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $2,519,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the 3rd quarter valued at $129,480,000. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 108.7% in the third quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,107,929 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $201,207,000 after acquiring an additional 1,618,570 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston in the third quarter worth about $86,883,000. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC bought a new stake in Lamb Weston during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,382,000. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in Lamb Weston by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,221,665 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $402,791,000 after purchasing an additional 549,812 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

NYSE LW opened at $52.14 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $7.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.72. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.48. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.96 and a 52-week high of $107.50.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). The company had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.82% and a net margin of 5.80%. The firm’s revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.45 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. 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 payout ratio is 58.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target 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. Citigroup downgraded Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $68.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Lamb Weston in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $81.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $81.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lamb Weston news, Director Charles A. Blixt purchased 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $63.25 per share, with a total value of $75,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,453,611.50. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert A. Niblock acquired 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $60.94 per share, with a total value of $182,820.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 26,406 shares in the company, valued at $1,609,181.64. This represents a 12.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lamb Weston 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.