5,311 Shares in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Purchased by Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC

Liberty Square Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 5,311 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,337,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,270,496 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $6,483,558,000 after purchasing an additional 259,766 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Lowe's Companies by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,979,337 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $2,952,341,000 after purchasing an additional 245,876 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth $1,842,954,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Lowe's Companies by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,391 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,745,960,000 after buying an additional 993,833 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,035,630 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,242,793,000 after buying an additional 323,371 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on LOW. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $253.00 price target (down previously from $269.00) on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Lowe's Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Lowe's Companies to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $271.12.

Lowe's Companies Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of LOW traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $225.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,475,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,512,144. The business has a fifty day moving average of $224.30 and a 200 day moving average of $243.46. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.39 and a 1 year high of $287.01. The company has a market cap of $126.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.00.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $20.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.09 billion. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.06 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.11%.

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.