Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System trimmed its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 159,492 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 4,761 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $37,198,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $1,842,954,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its position in Lowe's Companies by 350.2% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,373,460 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $585,770,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846,315 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 26,796.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,657,332 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $386,540,000 after buying an additional 1,651,170 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Lowe's Companies by 1,048.5% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 739,727 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $172,527,000 after buying an additional 675,318 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Trading Down 1.7%

NYSE:LOW traded down $3.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $224.12. The stock had a trading volume of 1,840,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,496,417. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.90. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $206.39 and a 52 week high of $287.01.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 49.12% and a net margin of 8.22%. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.06 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. This is a positive change from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on LOW shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Lowe's Companies from $244.00 to $242.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target 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 reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Mizuho restated an "outperform" rating and set a $280.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Friday, June 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $271.12.

Insider Activity at Lowe's Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,256,795. This represents a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.27% 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.