Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Purchased by Asset Management One Co. Ltd.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 230,982 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 13,769 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $53,872,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LOW. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations purchased a new position in Lowe's Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Lowe's Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Lowe's Companies in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased 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 worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lowe's Companies Price Performance

NYSE LOW traded up $0.78 on Wednesday, hitting $220.76. The stock had a trading volume of 1,931,959 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,534,556. The business's fifty day moving average price is $222.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $237.06. The stock has a market cap of $123.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.92. 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 announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $20.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.06 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio is 38.11%.

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 on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,898 shares in the company, valued at $7,256,795. This trade represents a 3.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on LOW shares. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $266.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. DA Davidson lowered 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 research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Lowe's Companies from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $271.12.

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.