Great Lakes Advisors LLC Sells 27,928 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lowered its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 6.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 410,267 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 27,928 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned about 0.07% of Lowe’s Companies worth $90,447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $1,638,746,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,693,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $13,677,378,000 after purchasing an additional 2,674,372 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $206,912,000. M&G Plc bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $217,995,000. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $126,615,000. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on LOW shares. Truist Financial increased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $252.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of LOW traded down $0.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $243.81. 1,889,727 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,513,320. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $181.85 and a 52 week high of $262.49. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $236.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.09. The firm has a market cap of $138.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The company had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.93 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. This is a boost from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.95%.

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.