Yahoo Finance Lamb Weston's (LW) Latest Expansion Effort Accelerates Growth
Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. LW unveiled that it has concluded the buyout of remaining equity interests in its European joint venture with Meijer Frozen Foods B.V. The deal was initially announced in October 2022 and is priced at €525 million in cash and shares of the company’s common stock.
Post completion, the company now owns 100% of Lamb-Weston/Meijer, v.o.f. It acquired five more manufacturing units to establish its footprint globally, including four facilities across Netherlands and one in the United Kingdom. Apart from this, the company now owns a sixth manufacturing unit via 75% interest in a joint venture in Austria.
All said, the acquisition is in sync with LW’s acquisition framework. We believe that, the move will solidify Lamb Weston’s manufacturing footprint to better serve its customers and tap into growth opportunities.
The Zacks Rank #1(Strong Buy) stock has gained 16.3% in the past three months against the industry’s 5.1% decline.
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Capacity Expansion Efforts Solid
Lamb Weston’s sturdy balance sheet and capacity to generate cash keep it well-placed to boost production capacity and fuel long-term growth. In September 2022, LW unveiled expansion plans for french fry processing capacity in Argentina with the construction of a new manufacturing unit in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires.
In July 2021, the company announced to expand french fry processing capacity at its existing American Falls, ID facility – with an envisioned capacity to manufacture more than 350 million pounds of frozen french fries and other potato products annually. In March 2021, the company had unveiled plans to build a new french fry processing facility in Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia, China.
Apart from the above-mentioned capacity-expansion endeavors, in July 2022, Lamb Weston bought an additional 40% stake in Lamb Weston Alimentos Modernos S.A. ("LWAMSA") — which is its joint venture in Argentina — taking its total ownership to 90%.
All said, Lamb Weston’s efforts to boost offerings and expand capacity enable the company to effectively meet rising demand conditions for snacks and fries.
Some Top-Ranked Food Bets
Some other top-ranked stocks are Conagra Brands CAG, Post Holding POST and Mondelez International, Inc. MDLZ.
Conagra, a consumer-packaged goods food company, currently sports a Zacks Rank #1. CAG has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 8.9%, on average. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Conagra’s current fiscal year’s sales and earnings suggest growth of 7.2% and 12.7%, respectively, from the corresponding year-ago reported figures.
Post Holdings, which is a consumer-packaged goods company, sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present. Post Holdings has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 34.8%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for POST’s current financial year’s sales and earnings suggest growth of 1.6% and 111.3%, respectively, from the year-ago reported numbers.
Mondelez International, which manufactures, markets, and sells snack food and beverage products, carries a Zacks Rank 2 (Buy). MDLZ has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 7.5%, on average.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Mondelez’s current financial year’s sales and earnings suggest growth of 9% and 7.5%, respectively, from the corresponding year-ago reported figures.
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Conagra Brands (CAG) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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Post Holdings, Inc. (POST) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Lamb Weston (LW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
