Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Stake Cut by Abacus FCF Advisors LLC

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 19.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 24,103 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 5,660 shares during the period. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $5,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe's Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe's Companies during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations acquired a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 60.0% during the 1st quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on LOW shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Lowe's Companies to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen raised Lowe's Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Lowe's Companies from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $266.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $269.00) on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe's Companies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $271.12.

Lowe's Companies Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE LOW traded up $1.75 on Thursday, reaching $223.35. 2,428,775 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,526,919. The company has a 50 day moving average of $223.50 and a 200 day moving average of $240.87. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $206.39 and a fifty-two week high of $287.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.17 billion, a PE ratio of 18.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.92.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.06 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. This is a boost from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is currently 39.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This represents a 3.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lowe's Companies 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.