Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) Shares Down 1%

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)’s share price traded down 1% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $242.06 and last traded at $243.05. 291,298 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 2,506,494 shares. The stock had previously closed at $245.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Gordon Haskett decreased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $252.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $236.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $234.09. The stock has a market cap of $138.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.07.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.07% and a net margin of 8.25%. The firm had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.56 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lowe’s Companies

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LOW. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,638,746,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,693,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $13,677,378,000 after acquiring an additional 2,674,372 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 20,275.6% during the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,205,014 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199,100 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth $206,912,000. Finally, M&G Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the first quarter worth $217,995,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

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.