Foster & Motley Inc. Boosts Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Foster & Motley Inc. grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,331 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,003 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $6,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LOW. PFG Advisors boosted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 2,699 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $561,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 22.3% in the third quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 8,618 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,791,000 after purchasing an additional 1,571 shares in the last quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 55,780 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $11,593,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.4% during the third quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,160 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,488,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Onyx Bridge Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. 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. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $280.00 price target on the stock. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $252.52.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

LOW traded up $0.99 during trading on Monday, reaching $231.23. The company had a trading volume of 1,870,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,537,832. The company has a market cap of $132.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.50, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.13. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $181.85 and a 12-month high of $262.49. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $239.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $218.89.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $18.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.47 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 51.42% and a net margin of 8.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.28 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.43%.

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.