Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Decreases Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC reduced its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 2.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,210 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 295 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $3,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in LOW. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,930,693 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,271,836,000 after buying an additional 116,855 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,638,746,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,211,131 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $714,637,000 after purchasing an additional 41,451 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in 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 worth $634,518,000 after purchasing an additional 52,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $430,090,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on LOW shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $243.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $280.00 price objective on the stock. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Gordon Haskett restated a “hold” rating and set a $245.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $250.41.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LOW traded up $0.50 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $213.80. The company had a trading volume of 389,156 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,525,840. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $223.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $228.11. The stock has a market cap of $121.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.08. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $181.85 and a twelve month high of $262.49.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.12. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 8.46%. The business had revenue of $21.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.23 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 24th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 24th. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.34%.

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.