Insider Selling: Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) EVP Sells $257,075.00 in Stock

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,256,795. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE LOW opened at $225.35 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $206.39 and a 1-year high of $287.01. The company has a 50 day moving average of $223.72 and a 200-day moving average of $241.57. The company has a market cap of $126.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.92.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.19% and a negative return on equity of 47.55%. The business had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is currently 39.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on LOW. KeyCorp upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $266.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Mizuho set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Truist Financial set a $264.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. DA Davidson cut 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 Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $296.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $271.12.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 19,830 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,894,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 106,305 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $26,236,000 after purchasing an additional 13,092 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 26,329 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $6,498,000 after buying an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 472,838 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $116,696,000 after buying an additional 7,187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,391 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,745,960,000 after buying an additional 993,833 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.