Gabelli Funds LLC Acquires 160 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Gabelli Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 48,715 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $10,740,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,693,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $13,677,378,000 after buying an additional 2,674,372 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 20,275.6% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,205,014 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199,100 shares during the last quarter. M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 1st quarter worth $217,995,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $126,615,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,840,704 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $468,884,000 after purchasing an additional 493,180 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total transaction of $1,684,262.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $262.29 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $244.18 and its 200 day moving average is $235.47. The firm has a market cap of $149.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07, 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.07% and a net margin of 8.25%. The firm had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.56 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 yield of 1.75%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LOW. UBS Group upped 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 report on Wednesday, August 21st. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $264.00 to $262.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $255.00.

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.