Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. Raises Stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 64.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,050 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,939 shares during the quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $2,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 10.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,010,730 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $7,045,006,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399,897 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 1,889.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,134,969 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $578,256,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,668 shares during the last quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 387.7% during the third quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 811,374 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $219,761,000 after purchasing an additional 645,017 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 170.5% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 735,633 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $162,178,000 after buying an additional 463,645 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,013,655 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $6,774,948,000 after buying an additional 460,851 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lowe’s Companies

In related news, EVP Quonta D. Vance sold 7,198 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.37, for a total transaction of $1,974,915.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,582,802.11. The trade was a 30.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $251.30 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.96, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $260.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $253.93. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $209.55 and a 52-week high of $287.01.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LOW. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $291.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.85.

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.