Ballentine Partners LLC Has $2.99 Million Stock Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 16.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,053 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,527 shares during the quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $2,994,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Stephens Consulting LLC grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 93.3% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 145 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Keener Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 1st quarter worth $35,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 118.6% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the second quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC lifted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 128.2% in the third quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 178 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on LOW shares. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $323.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital raised shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $238.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $270.60.

Insider Activity

In other Lowe’s Companies news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total value of $1,555,408.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,586,940.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total value of $1,555,408.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,586,940.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total value of $1,684,262.58. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $271.36 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $259.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $239.47. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $181.85 and a 1 year high of $287.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.07% and a net margin of 8.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is a boost from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 36.95%.

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.