Comerica Bank Sells 10,483 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• Comerica Bank reduced its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. by 4.5%, selling 10,483 shares, leaving them with 222,216 shares worth approximately $51.8 million.
• Multiple analysts have raised their price targets for Lowe's, with Wells Fargo increasing their target to $300.00, indicating a strong positive sentiment for the stock.
• Lowe's recently declared a dividend increase to $1.20 per share, reflecting confidence in its financial health, with a current dividend yield of 1.8%.

Comerica Bank reduced its holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 222,216 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 10,483 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $51,828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Lowe's Companies by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,609,378 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $12,736,545,000 after buying an additional 230,359 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Lowe's Companies by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,391 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,745,960,000 after buying an additional 993,833 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Lowe's Companies by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,207,081 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,214,448,000 after buying an additional 501,154 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Lowe's Companies by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,111,747 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,192,213,000 after buying an additional 330,701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Lowe's Companies by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,035,630 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,242,793,000 after buying an additional 323,371 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Lowe's Companies news, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.10, for a total value of $10,564,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 249,043 shares of the company's stock, valued at $65,772,256.30. This represents a 13.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 31,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This represents a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 42,059 shares of company stock worth $11,060,014. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on LOW shares. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Lowe's Companies to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $269.00 to $294.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $243.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Mizuho reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $280.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Friday, June 13th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe's Companies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $283.92.

Lowe's Companies Price Performance

Lowe's Companies stock traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $258.77. The company had a trading volume of 2,148,642 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,265,330. The firm has a market cap of $145.02 billion, a PE ratio of 21.26, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.89. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $206.38 and a one year high of $287.01. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $231.88 and a 200 day moving average of $230.26.

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

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd were issued a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is currently 39.44%.

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.