Sowell Financial Services LLC Acquires New Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 9,372 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,186,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 14.0% in 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 during the period. World Investment Advisors increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 26,329 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $6,498,000 after buying an additional 2,615 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 7,187 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 16.3% in 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 acquiring an additional 993,833 shares during the period. Finally, Trek Financial LLC bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $882,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LOW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $244.00 to $242.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $300.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $271.12.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $215.98 on Tuesday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $206.39 and a 52 week high of $287.01. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $223.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $239.26. The company has a market cap of $121.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This trade represents a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.