Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Shares Sold by Sandy Spring Bank

Sandy Spring Bank decreased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 80.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 531 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 2,221 shares during the quarter. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $35,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. West Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in Lamb Weston by 155.7% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 450 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lamb Weston to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert A. Niblock acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $60.94 per share, for a total transaction of $182,820.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 26,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,609,181.64. This trade represents a 12.82 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Charles A. Blixt acquired 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $63.25 per share, for a total transaction of $75,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 22,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,611.50. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $53.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.76. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.90 and a 1-year high of $107.50. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $56.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.17.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.35). The business 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 company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.45 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. Lamb Weston’s payout ratio is 58.50%.

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.