ERn Financial LLC Buys New Shares in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

ERn Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 903 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $245,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of LOW. Congress Asset Management Co. MA bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth $289,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 951,074 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $211,662,000 after purchasing an additional 84,722 shares during the period. Farmers Trust Co. increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 35.1% during the first quarter. Farmers Trust Co. now owns 1,446 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $368,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 7.3% in the first quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 1,900 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 5,622 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,374,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LOW shares. Loop Capital upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Gordon Haskett reduced their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. UBS Group raised 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. TD Cowen upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised Lowe’s Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $305.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.42.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 0.8 %

LOW opened at $284.05 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $161.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.82, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50 day moving average is $255.56 and its 200-day moving average is $238.28. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $181.85 and a 1-year high of $287.01.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.91 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of Lowe’s Companies 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Lowe’s Companies news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total transaction of $1,555,408.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,586,940.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was 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 owns 9,383 shares in the company, valued at $2,334,678.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

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.