Howard Capital Management Inc. Buys 198 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,857 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LOW. FMR LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 10.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,010,730 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $7,045,006,000 after buying an additional 2,399,897 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,013,655 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $6,774,948,000 after acquiring an additional 460,851 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.6% during the third 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 during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,369,052 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $912,508,000 after purchasing an additional 39,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.6% in the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 2,343,365 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $634,700,000 after purchasing an additional 36,054 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LOW shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $282.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $282.96.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, EVP Quonta D. Vance sold 7,198 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.37, for a total transaction of $1,974,915.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,703 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,582,802.11. This represents a 30.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

LOW opened at $238.93 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $134.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.11. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $253.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $258.90. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $211.80 and a one year high of $287.01.

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.