Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Acquires 192,512 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its stake in Lowe's Companies, acquiring an additional 192,512 shares, leading to a total holding of approximately 455,751 shares valued at $106.3 million.
• Analysts have varied projections for Lowe's stock, with 16 having "Buy" ratings, 9 "Hold," and 1 "Sell," while price targets range from $242 to $294, reflecting differing outlooks on the company's performance.
• Lowe's recently reported a 1.6% year-over-year revenue increase and earnings per share of $4.33, surpassing analyst expectations, despite a negative return on equity of 52.02%.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 73.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 455,751 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 192,512 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned about 0.08% of Lowe's Companies worth $106,295,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the first quarter valued at $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe's Companies in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Lowe's Companies

In other news, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of Lowe's Companies stock in a transaction dated 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of Lowe's Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total value of $238,938.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,462.80. This trade represents a 2.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lowe's Companies Stock Up 0.7%

LOW stock traded up $1.80 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $260.54. The stock had a trading volume of 1,270,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,698,040. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $236.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.42. The firm has a market cap of $146.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.41, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.87. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $206.38 and a twelve month high of $287.01.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $23.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $23.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.10 earnings per share. The company'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. On average, equities analysts predict 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.012 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 22nd. This represents a $0.05 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.0%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LOW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group raised their target price on Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Lowe's Companies from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Lowe's Companies to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Lowe's Companies from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $284.13.

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.