This 2016 spinoff is still a buy

Article Excerpt

LAMB WESTON HOLDINGS INC. $77 remains a spinoff buy. The company (New York symbol LW; Consumer sector; Shares o/s: 146.0 million; Market cap: $11.2 billion; Takeover Target Rating: Highest; Dividend yield: 1.2%; www.lambweston.com) produces frozen potatoes and other vegetable products for restaurants and prepared-food makers. Until November 9, 2016, it was a wholly owned subsidiary of Conagra Brands (New York symbol CAG). That’s when Conagra spun off Lamb Weston and handed its investors one Lamb Weston share for every three Conagra shares they held. In its fiscal 2021 second quarter, ended November 29, 2020, Lamb Weston’s sales fell 12.1%, to $896.1 million from $1.02 billion a year earlier. The decline is due to a 14% drop in volumes as restaurants continued to operate at reduced capacity because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Colder weather has also limited outdoor dining traffic. However, selling prices improved 2%. The company is also spending more to protect workers at its processing facilities from COVID-19. As a result, earnings per share in the…