Arkadios Wealth Advisors Acquires 10,953 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Key Points

• Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in Lowe's Companies by 124.2%, now holding 19,774 shares valued at approximately $4.61 million.
• Lowe's is set to pay a quarterly dividend of $1.20 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.11% and an increase from the previous dividend of $1.15.
• Analyst ratings indicate a mixed sentiment for Lowe's stock, with one sell, nine hold, and seventeen buy ratings, resulting in an average target price of $271.12.

Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 124.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,774 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 10,953 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors' holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $4,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe's Companies during the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lowe's Companies by 60.0% in the first 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Lowe's Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the firm'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 transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on LOW. Stifel Nicolaus cut 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 research note on Tuesday, May 27th. DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of 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. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Mizuho restated an "outperform" rating and set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Lowe's Companies from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $266.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lowe's Companies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $270.68.

Lowe's Companies Stock Performance

LOW traded up $2.76 on Friday, hitting $226.33. 3,400,746 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,422,152. The stock's fifty day moving average is $223.03 and its 200-day moving average is $231.74. The company has a market cap of $126.84 billion, a PE ratio of 18.75, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.89. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $206.38 and a 12 month high of $287.01.

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

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be paid a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.77%.

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.