Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Purchases 330,701 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. by 6.9%, holding 5,111,747 shares worth approximately $1.19 billion as of its latest SEC filing.
• Lowe's reported earnings of $2.92 per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, but its revenue fell by 2.0% year-over-year, totaling $20.93 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.20 per share, up from $1.15, with a dividend yield of 2.0% for the annualized payout.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 6.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,111,747 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 330,701 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 0.91% of Lowe's Companies worth $1,192,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LOW. Intrust Bank NA lifted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 3.8% in the first quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 9,340 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $2,178,000 after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the period. Wealthspire Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 101.4% during the 1st quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 16,080 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $3,750,000 after buying an additional 8,096 shares in the last quarter. Wallington Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 0.5% in the first quarter. Wallington Asset Management LLC now owns 44,176 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $10,303,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 242.5% during the first quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 63,652 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $14,846,000 after acquiring an additional 45,070 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,960 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lowe's Companies

In other news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of Lowe's Companies 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,795. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of Lowe's Companies stock traded up $2.81 on Friday, reaching $241.37. 2,746,101 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,652,532. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $206.38 and a fifty-two week high of $287.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $224.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $231.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $135.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.89.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe's Companies had a net margin of 8.22% and a negative return on equity of 49.12%. The business had revenue of $20.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.06 EPS. Lowe's Companies's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd were given a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio is 39.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note 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 note on Friday, April 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Lowe's Companies from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Lowe's Companies from $244.00 to $242.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $270.68.

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.