Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Purchased by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 813,617 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,740 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $220,368,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 1,889.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,134,969 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $578,256,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,668 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 20,275.6% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,205,014 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199,100 shares during the last quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 387.7% during the 3rd quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 811,374 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $219,761,000 after acquiring an additional 645,017 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,840,704 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $468,884,000 after acquiring an additional 493,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 170.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 735,633 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $162,178,000 after acquiring an additional 463,645 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $265.50 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.23 and a fifty-two week high of $287.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $268.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $244.50. The stock has a market cap of $150.62 billion, a PE ratio of 22.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.56 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were issued a $1.15 dividend. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 38.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total transaction of $1,555,408.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,586,940.30. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $2,334,678.06. This trade represents a 41.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Company 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.