United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund Purchases Shares of 3,200 Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund acquired a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,200 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $790,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 77.6% during the 4th quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 2,532 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $625,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the period. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. grew its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 171.0% in the fourth quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 4,146 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 2,616 shares in the last quarter. Summitry LLC increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 294,412 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $72,661,000 after purchasing an additional 5,813 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $152,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 279,632 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $69,013,000 after buying an additional 11,177 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $292.00 to $285.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.71.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LOW opened at $230.61 on Wednesday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $211.80 and a 52-week high of $287.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $247.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $257.71. The stock has a market cap of $130.21 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.29 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.19% and a negative return on equity of 47.55%. Analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.67%.

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.