PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators Takes $20.63 Million Position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators opened a new position in Lowe’s, buying 85,524 shares valued at about $20.63 million in the fourth quarter. The stake represents roughly 0.7% of its holdings and is its 25th-largest position.
• Other institutional investors also boosted their LOW holdings, and overall institutional ownership stands at 74.06%, indicating broad professional investor interest in the stock.
• Lowe’s recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates and raised its dividend to $1.25 per share quarterly, but analysts remain mixed as several cut price targets and some earnings estimates were trimmed for later years.

PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators purchased a new stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 85,524 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock, valued at approximately $20,625,000. Lowe's Companies accounts for approximately 0.7% of PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators' holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LOW. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 630,956 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $152,161,000 after purchasing an additional 21,119 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 446,441 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $107,664,000 after purchasing an additional 25,609 shares in the last quarter. Glenview Trust Co boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Glenview Trust Co now owns 207,797 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $50,112,000 after purchasing an additional 17,225 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 31,380 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $7,568,000 after purchasing an additional 4,711 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 134.3% in the third quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 56,252 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $14,137,000 after purchasing an additional 32,240 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Lowe's Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Lowe's Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies said Lowe’s new home-maintenance program could expand subscription-style revenue, giving the retailer a more recurring growth stream and a potential valuation tailwind. Lowe’s Wants to Help You Change Lightbulbs. How That Could Boost the Stock.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised some near- and longer-term earnings estimates for Lowe’s, including Q1 2028 and Q1 2029, which suggests analysts see solid earnings power ahead. Lowe's Companies, Inc. estimate updates
• Positive Sentiment: Recent articles highlighted Lowe’s dividend hike alongside other high-yield stocks, reinforcing the company’s appeal for income investors in a volatile market. The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights UnitedHealth, Donaldson, Lowe's and ePlus
• Neutral Sentiment: Several roundup pieces focused on Lowe’s as a recent dividend grower, which is supportive for sentiment but not a major operational catalyst on its own. 5 Stocks to Watch on Their Recent Dividend Hikes in a Volatile Market
• Neutral Sentiment: Another market wrap also mentioned Lowe’s among dividend-paying names attracting attention from cautious investors. 3 High-Yielding Dividend Stocks That Just Raised Their Payouts
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks trimmed some earnings estimates for FY2027, FY2028 and a few quarterly periods, signaling a bit more caution on Lowe’s longer-term profit trajectory. Lowe's Companies, Inc. estimate updates

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LOW. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $303.00 to $281.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 14th. BTIG Research cut shares of Lowe's Companies to a "reduce" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Gordon Haskett decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $280.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Lowe's Companies from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Thursday. Twenty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe's Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $264.57.

Lowe's Companies Price Performance

Lowe's Companies stock opened at $210.81 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $118.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.86. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $203.40 and a fifty-two week high of $293.06. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $230.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $246.50.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $23.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.98 billion. Lowe's Companies had a net margin of 7.51% and a negative return on equity of 67.96%. The business's revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.92 EPS. Lowe's Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.250-12.750 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 12.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe's Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. This is a positive change from Lowe's Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.57%.

Lowe's Companies Profile

Lowe's Companies, Inc is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and digital channels serving both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional contractors. The company offers a broad assortment of products including building materials, lumber, appliances, tools and hardware, plumbing and electrical supplies, paint, flooring, kitchen and bath fixtures, outdoor and garden products, and home decor. Lowe's also provides a range of services such as installation, home improvement financing, tool and equipment rental, and contractor-focused sales programs.

Operations are centered on a nationwide brick-and-mortar store network supported by distribution centers and an e-commerce platform that enables online ordering, delivery and in-store pickup.

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