Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Sells 1,942 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC cut its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 30,012 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 1,942 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $6,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 85.4% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 152 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on LOW. Gordon Haskett reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $245.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Zelman & Associates reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $280.00 target price on the stock. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $252.52.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

NYSE:LOW traded down $1.72 on Tuesday, reaching $229.22. 462,878 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,470,295. The firm has a market cap of $131.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.13. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $181.85 and a 52 week high of $262.49. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $240.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $220.18.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.94% and a negative return on equity of 51.42%. The firm had revenue of $18.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.28 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 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.