Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. Reduces Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc. cut its holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,124 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 146 shares during the quarter. Lowe’s Companies comprises approximately 1.9% of Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Weaver C. Barksdale & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $2,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position 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 during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,851,127 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $634,518,000 after purchasing an additional 52,859 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,840,704 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $468,884,000 after acquiring an additional 493,180 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,617,849 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $356,671,000 after purchasing an additional 90,945 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,516,347 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $337,463,000 after buying an additional 194,070 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

LOW stock opened at $261.01 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $243.06 and its 200-day moving average is $235.27. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $181.85 and a 1 year high of $262.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $148.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $23.93 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.56 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 36.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on LOW. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $264.00 to $262.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America decreased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, 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. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $253.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total value of $1,684,262.58. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,334,678.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.