Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. Sells 423,323 Shares of Lamb Weston $LW

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. trimmed its position in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) by 53.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 362,327 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 423,323 shares during the quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. owned 0.26% of Lamb Weston worth $15,312,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 44.2% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 649 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in Lamb Weston by 380.7% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 721 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 571 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lamb Weston by 121.1% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,130 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in Lamb Weston by 4,512.0% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,153 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,128 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of Lamb Weston stock opened at $45.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.46, a PEG ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. Lamb Weston has a 12-month low of $37.62 and a 12-month high of $67.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $43.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.24.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.11. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 4.61% and a return on equity of 23.77%. The company had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lamb Weston news, Director Jana Partners Management, Lp bought 136,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $40.89 per share, with a total value of $5,561,040.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,148,980 shares in the company, valued at $210,541,792.20. This trade represents a 2.71% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter J. Bensen bought 5,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $39.45 per share, for a total transaction of $197,250.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 17,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $678,697.80. This represents a 40.97% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased 391,000 shares of company stock worth $16,270,790 over the last three months. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LW. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $46.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Lamb Weston from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Bank of America cut their price target on Lamb Weston from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays reduced their price target on Lamb Weston from $55.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane lowered 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.82.

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.