SFE Investment Counsel Boosts Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

SFE Investment Counsel grew its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,511 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,243 shares during the quarter. Lowe’s Companies comprises approximately 2.4% of SFE Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $10,695,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,693,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $13,677,378,000 after acquiring an additional 2,674,372 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,638,746,000. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,851,127 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $634,518,000 after buying an additional 52,859 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,840,704 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $468,884,000 after buying an additional 493,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,516,347 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $337,463,000 after acquiring an additional 194,070 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of LOW opened at $243.78 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $181.85 and a fifty-two week high of $262.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $236.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $234.09. The company has a market cap of $138.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.07.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.56 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is a boost from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is presently 36.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LOW shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $252.83.

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.