Citigroup Inc. Increases Position in Lamb Weston $LW

Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) by 155.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 236,220 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 143,586 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $13,720,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 13.6% during the third quarter. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. now owns 1,772 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Lamb Weston by 115.5% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 446 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 6,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $352,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 17.7% in the third quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. Finally, First National Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. First National Advisers LLC now owns 49,756 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,580,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Lamb Weston Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $48.19 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.33, a P/E/G ratio of 7.08 and a beta of 0.45. Lamb Weston has a 1-year low of $39.79 and a 1-year high of $67.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $45.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.01. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.71% and a net margin of 6.06%.The company had revenue of $1.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on LW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $62.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Zacks Research lowered Lamb Weston from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane set a $48.00 price objective on Lamb Weston in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jan Eli B. Craps bought 50,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.65 per share, for a total transaction of $2,432,500.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 300,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,595,000. The trade was a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Lamb Weston 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.