Citigroup Has Lowered Expectations for Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citigroup has downgraded its price target for Lowe's Companies from $253.00 to $242.00, maintaining a "neutral" rating on the stock.
• Lowe's shares experienced a 1.7% decrease on Thursday, dropping to $223.55, with a market capitalization of $125.28 billion.
• Despite recent downgrades, Lowe's still holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with an average price target of $270.68.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Citigroup from $253.00 to $242.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the home improvement retailer's stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LOW. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Lowe's Companies from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $266.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $270.68.

Lowe's Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LOW traded up $6.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $232.49. The company's stock had a trading volume of 735,926 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,637,052. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $223.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $231.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $130.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.89. Lowe's Companies has a 1-year low of $206.38 and a 1-year high of $287.01.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe's Companies had a net margin of 8.22% and a negative return on equity of 49.12%. The firm had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.06 earnings per share. Lowe's Companies's quarterly revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Lowe's Companies will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio is 39.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lowe's Companies news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This trade represents a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lowe's Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LOW. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 119.7% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 31,965 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $7,889,000 after acquiring an additional 17,413 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Lowe's Companies by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,078 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $266,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Bryce Point Capital LLC purchased a new position in Lowe's Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $557,000. OneAscent Financial Services LLC grew its position in Lowe's Companies by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 4,243 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,047,000 after buying an additional 573 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Lowe's Companies by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,673 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $911,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.