IFM Investors Pty Ltd Has $27.35 Million Position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 117,268 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 9,461 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $27,350,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LOW. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations acquired a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe's Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 60.0% in the 1st quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on LOW. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $266.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $263.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $253.00 price objective (down from $269.00) on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Lowe's Companies from $244.00 to $242.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Lowe's Companies from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $271.12.

Lowe's Companies Price Performance

Shares of LOW traded up $1.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $228.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,777,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,498,145. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $223.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $235.23. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $206.39 and a fifty-two week high of $287.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $127.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.89, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.90.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. Lowe's Companies had a negative return on equity of 49.12% and a net margin of 8.22%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.06 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a $1.20 dividend. This is a positive change from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.11%.

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 stock was 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. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

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.