Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC Decreases Position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC lessened its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 43.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,003 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 4,529 shares during the period. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $1,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Lowe's Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations purchased a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe's Companies in the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW traded down $3.79 on Friday, reaching $224.12. The stock had a trading volume of 1,840,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,493,668. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.39 and a 12-month high of $287.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $224.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.03.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.06 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be issued a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. This is a boost from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio is 38.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe's Companies

In other news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,898 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,256,795. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LOW has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $263.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $255.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $266.00 price target on shares of Lowe's Companies and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. KeyCorp raised Lowe's Companies from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $266.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $264.00 target price on Lowe's Companies and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $271.12.

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.