Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Raises Stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 443,470 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 8,039 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Lowe’s Companies worth $100,091,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LOW. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,461,267,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted 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 valued at $1,012,147,000 after buying an additional 5,075,327 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted 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 valued at $22,604,000 after buying an additional 4,497,594 shares in the last quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 450.8% during the first quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 2,556,364 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $511,196,000 after buying an additional 2,092,245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 21.3% during 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 buying an additional 2,050,089 shares in the last quarter. 71.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $278.00 to $289.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $230.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $256.00 to $235.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $242.32.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

NYSE LOW traded up $1.42 on Friday, hitting $203.70. 2,217,015 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,794,460. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $201.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $213.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.07. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $181.85 and a twelve month high of $237.21.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 22nd. The home improvement retailer reported $4.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.49 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $24.96 billion for 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.67 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 13.31 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, January 24th will be given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 23rd. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 43.31%.

About Lowe’s Companies

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.