Ion Asset Management Ltd. Sells 1,102,453 Shares of Lamb Weston $LW

Ion Asset Management Ltd. lowered its stake in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) by 67.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 524,905 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,102,453 shares during the quarter. Lamb Weston makes up approximately 3.3% of Ion Asset Management Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Ion Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.38% of Lamb Weston worth $30,486,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 9,685 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. grew its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 13.6% in the third quarter. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. now owns 1,772 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Lamb Weston by 6.5% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,718 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in Lamb Weston by 115.5% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 446 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 4.4% in the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 6,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $352,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Lamb Weston news, insider Jan Eli B. Craps bought 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $48.65 per share, with a total value of $2,432,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 300,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,595,000. This trade represents a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $40.49 on Monday. Lamb Weston has a 12-month low of $39.79 and a 12-month high of $67.07. The business has a 50 day moving average of $45.61 and a 200-day moving average of $53.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. The stock has a market cap of $5.62 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a P/E/G ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 0.43.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.01. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.71% and a net margin of 6.06%.The business had revenue of $1.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This is a boost from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LW. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on Lamb Weston from $66.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. BNP Paribas Exane set a $48.00 price objective on Lamb Weston in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.00.

Lamb Weston Company Profile

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.