BlackRock Inc. Acquires 714,092 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,545,728 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 714,092 shares during the quarter. BlackRock Inc. owned 7.23% of Lowe's Companies worth $8,939,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LOW. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Sankala Group LLC acquired a new position in Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Lowe's Companies during the third quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $315.00 to $285.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $276.00 to $274.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Lowe's Companies from $228.00 to $202.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Lowe's Companies from $270.00 to $220.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $267.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lowe's Companies presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $262.63.

Lowe's Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW stock opened at $215.67 on Tuesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $216.15 and its 200-day moving average is $234.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.93 billion, a PE ratio of 18.23, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.86. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $199.40 and a 52 week high of $293.06.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.06. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 67.96% and a net margin of 7.51%.The company had revenue of $23.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.98 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.92 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Lowe's Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.250-12.750 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 12.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 22nd were issued a $1.25 dividend. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 22nd. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lowe's Companies news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.83, for a total value of $559,575.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,220 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,525,842.60. This trade represents a 11.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 9,330 shares of Lowe's Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.81, for a total value of $2,097,477.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 16,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,628,883.02. The trade was a 36.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 25,980 shares of company stock worth $5,796,937 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Company Profile

Lowe's Companies, Inc is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and digital channels serving both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional contractors. The company offers a broad assortment of products including building materials, lumber, appliances, tools and hardware, plumbing and electrical supplies, paint, flooring, kitchen and bath fixtures, outdoor and garden products, and home decor. Lowe's also provides a range of services such as installation, home improvement financing, tool and equipment rental, and contractor-focused sales programs.

Operations are centered on a nationwide brick-and-mortar store network supported by distribution centers and an e-commerce platform that enables online ordering, delivery and in-store pickup.

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