Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) Trading 1.7% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)’s share price shot up 1.7% during trading on Thursday after TD Cowen raised their price target on the stock from $240.00 to $265.00. TD Cowen currently has a hold rating on the stock. Lowe’s Companies traded as high as $262.25 and last traded at $261.05. 404,639 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 2,471,689 shares. The stock had previously closed at $256.63.

LOW has been the subject of several other research reports. Gordon Haskett lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $238.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $272.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, DA Davidson cut their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $253.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total transaction of $1,684,262.58. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares in the company, valued at $2,334,678.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lowe’s Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LOW. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 1.4% in the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 44,376 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $9,783,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 69.3% in the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 74,500 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $16,424,000 after acquiring an additional 30,500 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 32,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $7,194,000 after acquiring an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 6,764 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,491,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $218,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 0.3 %

The company has a market capitalization of $148.25 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $243.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $235.40.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.56 EPS. Research analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 36.95%.

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.