Callahan Advisors LLC Sells 2,423 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Callahan Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 3.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,775 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 2,423 shares during the quarter. Lowe's Companies makes up approximately 1.4% of Callahan Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Callahan Advisors LLC's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $14,408,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 125,299 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $29,223,000 after buying an additional 1,470 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 106,305 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $26,236,000 after buying an additional 13,092 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 26,329 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $6,498,000 after buying an additional 2,615 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,391 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $1,745,960,000 after buying an additional 993,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trek Financial LLC bought a new position in Lowe's Companies during the 4th quarter worth $882,000. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,256,795. This trade represents a 3.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on LOW shares. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $253.00 price objective (down from $269.00) on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Lowe's Companies from $244.00 to $242.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. KeyCorp upgraded Lowe's Companies from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $266.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lowe's Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Lowe's Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lowe's Companies has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $271.12.

Lowe's Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW traded down $3.79 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $224.12. 1,840,145 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,496,417. The company has a market cap of $125.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.57, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.90. The firm's 50 day moving average is $224.20 and its 200-day moving average is $234.42. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion during 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 was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.06 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be issued a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. This is a boost from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.11%.

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.