Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Stock Position Decreased by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP reduced its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 25.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 271,276 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 94,119 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $66,951,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,842,954,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $314,435,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 24,531.0% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,228,102 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $303,096,000 after acquiring an additional 1,223,116 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 60.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,603,305 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $642,730,000 after acquiring an additional 976,823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 42,529.8% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 846,202 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $208,843,000 after acquiring an additional 844,217 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LOW. StockNews.com raised shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $296.00 to $269.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. BNP Paribas upgraded Lowe’s Companies to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $295.00 to $258.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $278.74.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $219.03 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $122.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.27, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.07. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.39 and a 1 year high of $287.01. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $231.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $251.89.

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

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

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

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.