Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC Boosts Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,655 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 655 shares during the period. Lowe’s Companies comprises 1.0% of Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $5,517,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 60.0% during the 1st quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LOW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective 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. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. KeyCorp raised Lowe’s Companies from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $266.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $266.00 price target on Lowe’s Companies and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial set a $264.00 price target on Lowe’s Companies and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $270.68.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $238.35 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $223.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $231.28. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $206.38 and a 1-year high of $287.01. The firm has a market cap of $133.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.89.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.22% and a negative return on equity of 49.12%. The business had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd were paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 23rd. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,256,795. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lowe’s Companies Company 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.