Great Lakes Advisors LLC Has $106.84 Million Holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. by 2.9%, holding approximately 459,177 shares valued at $106.8 million after selling 13,661 shares in the first quarter.
• Research analysts have boosted their price targets for Lowe's Companies, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $284.13.
• Lowe's Companies reported $4.33 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding expectations, while revenue showed a 1.6% annual increase.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 459,177 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 13,661 shares during the quarter. Lowe's Companies makes up approximately 1.0% of Great Lakes Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Lowe's Companies worth $106,844,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 230,359 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Lowe's Companies by 10.6% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,207,081 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,214,448,000 after purchasing an additional 501,154 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 6.9% in the first 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 purchasing an additional 330,701 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Lowe's Companies by 6.9% in the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 323,371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,779,120 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $881,406,000 after purchasing an additional 225,964 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Lowe's Companies

In other news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of Lowe's Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total transaction of $238,938.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,741,462.80. This trade represents a 2.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brandon J. Sink sold 8,192 shares of Lowe's Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.58, for a total value of $2,200,207.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,603 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,802,133.74. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 49,121 shares of company stock valued at $13,003,146. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lowe's Companies Trading Up 2.3%

LOW stock traded up $6.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $272.56. 2,253,358 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,716,010. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $206.38 and a 1-year high of $287.01. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $241.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $231.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $152.86 billion, a PE ratio of 22.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Lowe's Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.012 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. This represents a $0.05 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.0%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LOW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Lowe's Companies from $269.00 to $294.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Lowe's Companies to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $284.13.

About Lowe's Companies

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.