DnB Asset Management AS Increases Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

DnB Asset Management AS increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 102,983 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,195 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $25,416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,013,655 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $6,774,948,000 after acquiring an additional 460,851 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,733,461 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,169,041,000 after purchasing an additional 187,473 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $1,842,954,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,186,720 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,033,283,000 after buying an additional 385,994 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,459,064 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $853,697,000 after buying an additional 90,012 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 1.7 %

LOW opened at $228.20 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $211.80 and a twelve month high of $287.01. The firm has a market cap of $127.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $245.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $257.24.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.10. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. The business had revenue of $18.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.29 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $296.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. BNP Paribas upgraded Lowe’s Companies to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $279.71.

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.