First Manhattan CO. LLC. Raises Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

First Manhattan CO. LLC. increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,399,457 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,708 shares during the period. Lowe’s Companies makes up about 1.0% of First Manhattan CO. LLC.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. First Manhattan CO. LLC.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $349,991,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 4.0% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 649,601 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $175,944,000 after buying an additional 24,812 shares during the period. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 288.6% in the 4th quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 19,028 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,696,000 after purchasing an additional 14,132 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 362,209 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $98,104,000 after purchasing an additional 4,435 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 19,830 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $4,894,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 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 buying an additional 13,092 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on LOW shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $292.00 to $285.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $295.00 to $258.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $266.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $278.04.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $224.54 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.39 and a 1 year high of $287.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $225.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $247.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.00.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.10. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.19% and a negative return on equity of 47.55%. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.29 billion. On average, analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.67%.

About Lowe’s Companies

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.