Trust Co. of Vermont Boosts Stock Holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. $LOW

Key Points

• Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in Lowe's Companies, Inc. by 1.8% during the second quarter, owning 100,511 shares valued at approximately $22.3 million.
• Several Wall Street analysts have raised their price targets for Lowe's, with the consensus rating classified as a "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $285.50.
• CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, decreasing his ownership by 13.84%, while company insiders collectively sold 92,931 shares valued at nearly $25 million over the last ninety days.

Trust Co. of Vermont raised its holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 100,511 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 1,774 shares during the period. Lowe's Companies accounts for about 1.1% of Trust Co. of Vermont's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Trust Co. of Vermont's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $22,300,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vertex Planning Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 2.9% in the first quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 1,582 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 0.5% in the first quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,386 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $2,189,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 0.8% in the first quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 5,817 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $1,357,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 5.9% in the first quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 865 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zullo Investment Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.1% in the first quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 4,542 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $1,059,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $280.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $269.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Lowe's Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $285.50.

Insider Activity at Lowe's Companies

In other news, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.10, for a total transaction of $10,564,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 249,043 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,772,256.30. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Joseph Michael Mcfarland sold 43,810 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.60, for a total transaction of $11,942,606.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 66,566 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,145,891.60. This represents a 39.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,931 shares of company stock valued at $24,945,752 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of LOW opened at $251.20 on Wednesday. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $206.38 and a twelve month high of $287.01. The company has a market cap of $140.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.87. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $252.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $233.68.

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

Lowe's Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is currently 39.44%.

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.

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