Quarry LP Purchases New Shares in Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• Quarry LP has acquired a new stake in Lowe's Companies, purchasing 2,713 shares valued at approximately $633,000 during the first quarter.
• Insider trading activity includes a sale of 40,000 shares by CEO Marvin R. Ellison for over $10.5 million, reflecting a significant decrease in his ownership.
• Lowe's reported $4.33 EPS in its latest earnings, surpassing expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of only $0.012, resulting in a low yield of 0.0%.

Quarry LP bought a new position in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,713 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock, valued at approximately $633,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LOW. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $52,000. Vista Cima Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $44,000. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lowe's Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $233,000. Texas Bank & Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 9.1% during the 1st quarter. Texas Bank & Trust Co now owns 15,710 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $3,664,000 after purchasing an additional 1,312 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 90.8% during the 1st quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,884 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $3,238,000 after purchasing an additional 6,606 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lowe's Companies Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of LOW traded up $4.60 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $269.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,961,466 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,695,292. The company's 50-day moving average is $237.93 and its 200-day moving average is $230.72. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $206.38 and a 52-week high of $287.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.13, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Lowe's Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.012 per share. This represents a $0.05 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is 39.44%.

Insider Activity at Lowe's Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total transaction of $238,938.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares in the company, valued at $7,741,462.80. The trade was a 2.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.10, for a total transaction of $10,564,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 249,043 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,772,256.30. This trade represents a 13.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LOW shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Lowe's Companies from $253.00 to $242.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Piper Sandler boosted their target price 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. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $243.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $266.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.