Cetera Trust Company N.A Sells 2,430 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Cetera Trust Company N.A cut its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 83.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 477 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 2,430 shares during the quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $111,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $1,842,954,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in Lowe's Companies by 350.2% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,373,460 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $585,770,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846,315 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 26,796.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,657,332 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $386,540,000 after buying an additional 1,651,170 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $314,435,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Lowe's Companies by 16.3% during the fourth 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. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Stock Up 0.8%

NYSE:LOW traded up $1.75 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $223.35. The company had a trading volume of 2,485,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,527,012. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $223.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $240.87. The firm has a market cap of $125.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.92. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $206.39 and a twelve month high of $287.01.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe's Companies had a net margin of 8.19% and a negative return on equity of 47.55%. The business had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.06 EPS. Lowe's Companies's quarterly revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is currently 39.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on LOW. Mizuho set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $253.00 target price (down from $269.00) on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Lowe's Companies to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $266.00 price objective on Lowe's Companies and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $271.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lowe's Companies news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 31,898 shares in the company, valued at $7,256,795. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lowe's Companies Company 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.