JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Stock Price

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) had its price objective upped by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $68.00 to $78.00 in a research report report published on Monday,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on LW. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.25.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

NYSE:LW opened at $78.22 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $77.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.83. Lamb Weston has a 12-month low of $52.99 and a 12-month high of $111.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 34.33%. Lamb Weston’s revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is 33.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LW. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Lamb Weston by 34.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,010 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $589,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 251.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 436 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Lamb Weston by 237.1% in the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 185,444 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $15,592,000 after buying an additional 130,428 shares during the last quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the second quarter valued at $1,221,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Lamb Weston by 86.2% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,946 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $500,000 after purchasing an additional 2,753 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

About Lamb Weston

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.