Forbes J M & Co. LLP Acquires Shares of 200 Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Forbes J M & Co. LLP acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 200 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $47,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LOW. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LOW has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $300.00 to $263.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Mizuho restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $280.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Friday, June 13th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $253.00 price target (down from $269.00) on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $244.00 to $242.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $271.12.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This represents a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of LOW stock opened at $226.94 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $127.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $223.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.02. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.39 and a 1 year high of $287.01.

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

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend 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.