Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Short Interest Up 28.5% in October

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,430,000 shares, an increase of 28.5% from the September 30th total of 5,780,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,420,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 5.4% of the company's stock are sold short.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

NYSE:LW traded up $0.73 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $77.65. 1,877,669 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,552,568. The company has a market capitalization of $11.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.75. Lamb Weston has a 12 month low of $52.99 and a 12 month high of $111.88. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $66.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.51. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 34.33% and a net margin of 9.57%. The business had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Lamb Weston will post 4.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.23%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lamb Weston

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LW. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 248.6% in the first quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 244 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. City State Bank boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 56.2% during the 3rd quarter. City State Bank now owns 417 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Lamb Weston during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 357.5% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $132.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America increased their target price on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $68.00 price target (up from $63.00) on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $82.22.

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.