Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC Has $13.05 Million Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC decreased its holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 59,206 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 75 shares during the quarter. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $13,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Stephens Consulting LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 93.3% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 145 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keener Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $272.00 to $270.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $253.33.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW stock opened at $261.01 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $243.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $235.27. The stock has a market cap of $148.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.96, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.10. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $181.85 and a 52-week high of $262.49.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.07% and a net margin of 8.25%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.56 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.95%.

Insider Transactions at Lowe’s Companies

In other Lowe’s Companies news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of Lowe’s Companies 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,383 shares in the company, valued at $2,334,678.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.