Legal & General Group Plc Has $914.27 Million Stock Holdings in Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Legal & General Group Plc lessened its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 26.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,704,488 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 1,340,545 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.66% of Lowe's Companies worth $914,268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Lowe's Companies by 4.0% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 649,601 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $175,944,000 after purchasing an additional 24,812 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 288.6% in the fourth quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 19,028 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $4,696,000 after buying an additional 14,132 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 362,209 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $98,104,000 after acquiring an additional 4,435 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its holdings in shares of Lowe's Companies by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 19,830 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $4,894,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 26,329 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $6,498,000 after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lowe's Companies Trading Down 0.5 %

LOW stock traded down $1.15 during trading on Thursday, hitting $222.05. 1,707,351 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,456,008. The stock has a market cap of $124.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.07. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $206.39 and a one year high of $287.01. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $237.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $254.99.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.29 billion. Lowe's Companies had a net margin of 8.19% and a negative return on equity of 47.55%. As a group, analysts predict that Lowe's Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe's Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Lowe's Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LOW shares. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Lowe's Companies from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $292.00 to $285.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Lowe's Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Lowe's Companies to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wedbush restated a "neutral" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe's Companies currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $278.74.

Lowe's Companies Company Profile

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.