First Foundation Advisors Sells 3,167 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

First Foundation Advisors decreased its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 48,767 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 3,167 shares during the quarter. First Foundation Advisors’ holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $12,036,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. IFS Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 56.4% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 122 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations purchased a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOW has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $292.00 to $285.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company 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 fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.74.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $218.91 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $237.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $254.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.26, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.07. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $206.39 and a 52 week high of $287.01.

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

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be given a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.67%.

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.