Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW Stock: Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 171.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 135,961 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 85,811 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $25,056,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of LOW. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 40,545,728 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $8,939,928,000 after buying an additional 714,092 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,329,373 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $5,584,873,000 after buying an additional 880,815 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,047,615 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $956,371,000 after buying an additional 201,803 shares during the period. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 57.3% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,892,868 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $637,848,000 after buying an additional 1,053,237 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 7.1% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,646,320 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $388,992,000 after buying an additional 109,520 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Latest Lowe’s Companies News

These are some of the LOW news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see potential for an earnings beat. Lowe’s has a +0.59% Earnings ESP, with Pro demand and digital growth cited as supports. Its history of earnings surprises is also highlighted, but the Q3 results have not yet been reported. Earnings preview
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price targets have moved higher. Bernstein raised its target to $270 from $254 and maintained an Outperform rating; a separate report also noted a JPMorgan target increase. Higher targets signal improved analyst optimism, but do not guarantee share gains. Bernstein rating information JPMorgan price target report
• Negative Sentiment: Housing weakness and cost pressures could weigh on results. These headwinds may offset Pro demand and digital growth, limiting the likelihood or significance of an earnings beat. Earnings risks

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on LOW shares. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $260.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Melius Research set a $244.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $200.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $245.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $254.74.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of LOW opened at $231.52 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $198.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $224.47. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $178.45 and a 12 month high of $293.06.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.22 by $0.18. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 75.67% and a net margin of 7.34%. The firm had revenue of $25.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.13 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.250-12.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 21st were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 21st. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.27%.

About Lowe’s Companies

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. is a home improvement retailer serving homeowners, do-it-yourself customers and professional contractors. The company sells products for construction, maintenance, repair and renovation through its retail stores and online channels. Its offerings include appliances, tools, hardware, lumber and building materials, paint, plumbing and electrical supplies, and products for lawn and garden. Lowe’s also provides services such as installation and other project support. Founded in 1921 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, Lowe’s has grown into a major retailer operating across the United States.