09:52 AM EDT, 10/18/2024 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with price movement in headline and fourth paragraph as well as details throughout.)

Activist investor Jana Partners has amassed a roughly 5% stake in french-fry maker Lamb Weston Holdings ( LW ) and plans to urge the company to explore a sale, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Jana Partners is looking to get the company to improve its operations and capital-allocation strategy, and believes it could be an acquisition target for larger food companies, the Journal reported.

Jana Partners could also nominate directors to the company's board and is working with Lamb Weston's ( LW ) former executive chairman Timothy McLevish, among other industry executives, the report added.

Shares of Lamb Weston ( LW ) were up more than 7% in recent trading.

Lamb Weston ( LW ) and Jana Partners did not immediately respond to requests for comment from MT Newswires.

(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

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