Norway Savings Bank Has $1.50 Million Stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Norway Savings Bank grew its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,653 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the quarter. Norway Savings Bank’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,502,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 21.3% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,690,606 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,329,237,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,089 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,461,267,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 107,710.7% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,080,039 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,012,147,000 after buying an additional 5,075,327 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 19,964.5% during the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,520,122 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $22,604,000 after buying an additional 4,497,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 0.9% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,734,142 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $740,949,000 after buying an additional 32,129 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.88% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock traded down $10.85 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $220.02. The company had a trading volume of 9,188,534 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,830,432. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $227.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.55. The firm has a market cap of $126.98 billion, a PE ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.09. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $176.50 and a fifty-two week high of $237.21.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 22nd. The home improvement retailer reported $4.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.49 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $24.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.97 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 58.56% and a net margin of 6.48%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.67 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 13.46 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 24th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 43.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Janice Dupre sold 5,380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.28, for a total transaction of $1,244,286.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,216 shares in the company, valued at $5,600,676.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Janice Dupre sold 5,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.28, for a total transaction of $1,244,286.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,216 shares in the company, valued at $5,600,676.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Joseph Michael Mcfarland sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.53, for a total value of $1,001,385.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 46,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,368,562.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LOW. StockNews.com raised Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $221.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $237.48.

Lowe’s Companies Profile

Lowe's Companies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a home improvement retailer in the United States. The company offers a line of products for construction, maintenance, repair, remodeling, and decorating. It also provides home improvement products, such as appliances, seasonal and outdoor living, lawn and garden, lumber, kitchens and bath, tools, paint, millwork, hardware, flooring, rough plumbing, building materials, décor, and electrical.