Lamb Weston Holdings Inc (NYSE:LW) Board of Directors announced a quarterly payout of $0.19125 per share of its common stock, as compared to $0.1875 per share in the previous quarter. The dividend date is reported to be March 2, 2018 to shareholders as of record date February 2, 2018. Besides, the company reported that it will target a yearly payout ratio of 25% to 35% of Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share.
The details
In addition to the announcement of increase in its quarterly payout, Lamb Weston reported expansion of French fry processing volume in North America. Tom Werner, the CEO and President, expressed that the french fry segment has been expanding at attractive rates across the globe, and they consider industry capacity has been tested in recent years to match continued increase in market demand. This investment in a latest french fry processing line reflects company’s continued commitment to help their strategic associates as they continue to develop their operations in North America and abroad.
Lamb Weston Holdings reported an investment to expand businesses at its Hermiston processing facility with the establishment of a 300 million pound-a-year, advanced french fry line. This line will be modeled on the firm’s recently active production line in Richland, and is projected to be finished in Q4 2019. The new line is planned to support development in North America, and exports to Asia where growth in demand has been noted. Also, it is projected to stay strong in the coming period. The expansion is anticipated to add around 170 full time positions.
Oregon Governor Kate Brown has permitted an award from the Strategic Reserve Fund of state to help advance the project. The award is planned to boost infrastructure development at the respective site and diversification and workforce training. The total investment for the latest line is projected to be around $250 million.
