Earned Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Key Points

• Earned Wealth Advisors LLC has acquired a new position in Lowe's Companies, purchasing 1,214 shares valued at approximately $283,000 in the first quarter of the year.
• Institutional investors now own 74.06% of Lowe's Companies stock, indicating strong confidence in the retailer as several hedge funds have significantly increased their holdings.
• Lowe's Companies recently announced a quarterly dividend increase, boosting it from $1.15 to $1.20 per share, reflecting positive financial performance and shareholder support.

Earned Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,214 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock, valued at approximately $283,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.2% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 125,299 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $29,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470 shares during the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Lowe's Companies by 14.0% during the fourth 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 period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Lowe's Companies by 8.1% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $3,860,000 after buying an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Lowe's Companies by 16.3% in the fourth 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. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 12.6% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 29,361 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $6,848,000 after acquiring an additional 3,295 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Lowe's Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 31,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,795. This trade represents a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on LOW. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. KeyCorp raised Lowe's Companies from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $266.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $260.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on Lowe's Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned 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 $270.68.

Lowe's Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LOW traded up $0.89 on Wednesday, hitting $238.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,448,656 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,670,507. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $223.53 and a 200-day moving average of $231.23. The company has a market capitalization of $133.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.89. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.38 and a 12-month 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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 49.12% and a net margin of 8.22%. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.06 earnings per share. Lowe's Companies's revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost 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 presently 39.77%.

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.