Cerity Partners LLC Trims Stock Position in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Cerity Partners LLC cut its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 36.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,005 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 9,058 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $1,041,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LW. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 167,182 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $11,162,000 after buying an additional 18,635 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 97.9% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 588,027 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $39,298,000 after acquiring an additional 290,901 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,859,000. Provident Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 2,535.7% during the 4th quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 293,086 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $19,587,000 after purchasing an additional 281,966 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 69,193 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,624,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of LW opened at $53.45 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $53.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.64. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $47.90 and a 52-week high of $89.51. The stock has a market cap of $7.54 billion, a PE ratio of 21.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.48.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.20 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $72.00 to $66.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays dropped their target price on Lamb Weston from $87.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Citigroup cut Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $68.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lamb Weston to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.27.

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.