Lamb Weston Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:LW)

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors purchased 35,906 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 291% compared to the typical daily volume of 9,194 put options.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 4.3 %

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $62.65 on Wednesday. Lamb Weston has a 12 month low of $52.99 and a 12 month high of $110.46. 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 company’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.16. The firm has a market cap of $8.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.73.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). The business had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. This is a positive change from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is 58.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $68.00 in a report on Friday, December 20th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $87.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $81.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lamb Weston

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LW. City State Bank lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 56.2% in the 3rd quarter. City State Bank now owns 417 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its holdings in Lamb Weston by 0.8% in the third quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 18,756 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,214,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.8% during the third quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,648 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 5.4% during the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,649 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $241,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 4.6% during the third quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 4,592 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.