Boothbay Fund Management LLC Raises Position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• Boothbay Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. by 12.8%, acquiring an additional 3,875 shares, bringing its total to 34,240 shares valued at approximately $7.99 million.
• Several research firms raised their price targets for Lowe's stock, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $284.13.
• Lowe's recently reported earnings of $4.33 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, while announcing a dividend cut to $0.012 per share, reflecting a yield of 0.0%.

Boothbay Fund Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 12.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,240 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 3,875 shares during the quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $7,986,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gen Wealth Partners Inc raised its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 2,163 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $534,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Second Line Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 4,793 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,183,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. Vertex Planning Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 1,582 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $369,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 0.5% during the first quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,386 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $2,189,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 0.8% during the first quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 5,817 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $1,357,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of Lowe's Companies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.10, for a total transaction of $10,564,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 249,043 shares in the company, valued at $65,772,256.30. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total value of $238,938.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,462.80. This represents a 2.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lowe's Companies Stock Performance

NYSE LOW traded up $2.98 on Monday, hitting $272.95. 4,464,567 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,720,737. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $238.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $230.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.87. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $206.38 and a 52-week high of $287.01.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.09. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 52.02% and a net margin of 8.20%.The business had revenue of $23.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.10 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Lowe's Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 12.200-12.450 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.012 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. This represents a $0.05 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.0%. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is 39.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on LOW. Gordon Haskett raised Lowe's Companies to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Truist Financial raised their price target on Lowe's Companies from $264.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Lowe's Companies from $269.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $284.13.

About Lowe's Companies

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.