Trust Co. of Vermont Purchases 498 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 98,737 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 498 shares during the period. Lowe’s Companies accounts for about 1.1% of Trust Co. of Vermont’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $23,028,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 125,299 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $29,223,000 after buying an additional 1,470 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 106,305 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $26,236,000 after buying an additional 13,092 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 11.0% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 472,838 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $116,696,000 after buying an additional 7,187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,391 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,745,960,000 after buying an additional 993,833 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This trade represents a 3.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $300.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $296.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Mizuho reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $280.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Friday, June 13th. One investment 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 data from MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $271.12.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 0.3%

LOW opened at $221.47 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $223.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $236.58. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.39 and a 12-month high of $287.01.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.09 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.22% and a negative return on equity of 49.12%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.06 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 38.11%.

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.