Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Stake Reduced by Fiduciary Group LLC

Fiduciary Group LLC decreased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,102 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 269 shares during the quarter. Fiduciary Group LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,803,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.1% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,930,693 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,271,836,000 after buying an additional 116,855 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.1% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,138,824 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,483,733,000 after purchasing an additional 78,901 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 189.5% in the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,798,268 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $581,592,000 after purchasing an additional 1,831,727 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 187,225.6% in the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 2,111,159 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $438,783,000 after purchasing an additional 2,110,032 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $430,090,000. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

LOW opened at $230.31 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.47, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.13. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $181.85 and a 52-week high of $262.49. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $239.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.94.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $18.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.94% and a negative return on equity of 51.42%. Lowe’s Companies’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 33.43%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LOW shares. Citigroup upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $199.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. UBS Group upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $238.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $252.52.

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.