Haverford Trust Co Sells 8,274 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Haverford Trust Co lessened its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 918,258 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 8,274 shares during the quarter. Lowe’s Companies makes up approximately 2.4% of Haverford Trust Co’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Haverford Trust Co owned about 0.16% of Lowe’s Companies worth $248,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Stephens Consulting LLC grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 93.3% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 145 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 555.6% in the 3rd quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 118 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 118.6% in the 3rd quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 128.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 178 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total transaction of $1,555,408.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,586,940.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Lowe’s Companies news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total value of $1,555,408.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares in the company, valued at $3,586,940.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total transaction of $1,684,262.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE:LOW opened at $269.84 on Wednesday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $192.10 and a 1 year high of $287.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $265.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $242.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.08 billion, a PE ratio of 22.37, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. Lowe’s Companies’s revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.56 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were given a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $238.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $273.84.

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.