NYSE:LOWLowe's Companies Competitors & Alternatives

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) and Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) are both large-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Risk & Volatility

Walmart has a beta of 0.31, meaning that its stock price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lowe's Companies has a beta of 1.45, meaning that its stock price is 45% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Walmart and Lowe's Companies, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

Walmart presently has a consensus price target of $134.3125, suggesting a potential upside of 1.84%. Lowe's Companies has a consensus price target of $148.40, suggesting a potential downside of 5.25%. Given Walmart's higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Walmart is more favorable than Lowe's Companies.

Profitability

This table compares Walmart and Lowe's Companies' net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Walmart and Lowe's Companies' gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Walmart has higher revenue and earnings than Lowe's Companies. Walmart is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lowe's Companies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

30.0% of Walmart shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.5% of Lowe's Companies shares are held by institutional investors. 50.4% of Walmart shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Lowe's Companies shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Walmart pays an annual dividend of $2.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Lowe's Companies pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Walmart pays out 43.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Lowe's Companies pays out 38.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Walmart has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years and Lowe's Companies has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years.

Summary

Lowe's Companies beats Walmart on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) and Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) are both large-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, risk, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Dividends

Home Depot pays an annual dividend of $6.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Lowe's Companies pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Home Depot pays out 58.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Lowe's Companies pays out 38.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Home Depot has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years and Lowe's Companies has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares Home Depot and Lowe's Companies' net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Home Depot and Lowe's Companies' top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Home Depot has higher revenue and earnings than Lowe's Companies. Lowe's Companies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Home Depot, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Home Depot and Lowe's Companies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Home Depot currently has a consensus price target of $263.9667, indicating a potential downside of 6.26%. Lowe's Companies has a consensus price target of $148.40, indicating a potential downside of 5.25%. Given Lowe's Companies' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Lowe's Companies is more favorable than Home Depot.

Risk & Volatility

Home Depot has a beta of 1.06, meaning that its share price is 6% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lowe's Companies has a beta of 1.45, meaning that its share price is 45% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

69.7% of Home Depot shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.5% of Lowe's Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Home Depot shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Lowe's Companies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Home Depot beats Lowe's Companies on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

Mcdonald's (NYSE:MCD) and Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) are both large-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Mcdonald's and Lowe's Companies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Mcdonald's currently has a consensus target price of $210.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.93%. Lowe's Companies has a consensus target price of $148.40, indicating a potential downside of 5.25%. Given Mcdonald's' higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Mcdonald's is more favorable than Lowe's Companies.

Profitability

This table compares Mcdonald's and Lowe's Companies' net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Dividends

Mcdonald's pays an annual dividend of $5.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Lowe's Companies pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Mcdonald's pays out 63.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Lowe's Companies pays out 38.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Mcdonald's has raised its dividend for 12 consecutive years and Lowe's Companies has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

67.0% of Mcdonald's shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.5% of Lowe's Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Mcdonald's shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Lowe's Companies shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Mcdonald's and Lowe's Companies' top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Mcdonald's has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Lowe's Companies. Mcdonald's is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lowe's Companies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Mcdonald's has a beta of 0.65, suggesting that its stock price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lowe's Companies has a beta of 1.45, suggesting that its stock price is 45% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Lowe's Companies beats Mcdonald's on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) and Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) are both large-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

68.8% of Costco Wholesale shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.5% of Lowe's Companies shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Costco Wholesale shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Lowe's Companies shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Costco Wholesale and Lowe's Companies' revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Lowe's Companies has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Costco Wholesale. Lowe's Companies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Costco Wholesale, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Costco Wholesale and Lowe's Companies, as reported by MarketBeat.

Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus price target of $337.8261, suggesting a potential upside of 0.32%. Lowe's Companies has a consensus price target of $148.40, suggesting a potential downside of 5.25%. Given Costco Wholesale's higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Costco Wholesale is more favorable than Lowe's Companies.

Profitability

This table compares Costco Wholesale and Lowe's Companies' net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Risk & Volatility

Costco Wholesale has a beta of 0.69, indicating that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lowe's Companies has a beta of 1.45, indicating that its stock price is 45% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Costco Wholesale pays an annual dividend of $2.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Lowe's Companies pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Costco Wholesale pays out 34.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Lowe's Companies pays out 38.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Costco Wholesale has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years and Lowe's Companies has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years. Lowe's Companies is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Lowe's Companies beats Costco Wholesale on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) and Pinduoduo (NASDAQ:PDD) are both large-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Lowe's Companies and Pinduoduo's net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Lowe's Companies and Pinduoduo, as reported by MarketBeat.

Lowe's Companies currently has a consensus price target of $148.40, indicating a potential downside of 5.25%. Pinduoduo has a consensus price target of $68.4071, indicating a potential downside of 24.08%. Given Lowe's Companies' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Lowe's Companies is more favorable than Pinduoduo.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

74.5% of Lowe's Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 20.0% of Pinduoduo shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Lowe's Companies shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Lowe's Companies and Pinduoduo's revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Lowe's Companies has higher revenue and earnings than Pinduoduo. Pinduoduo is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lowe's Companies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

Lowe's Companies has a beta of 1.45, indicating that its share price is 45% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pinduoduo has a beta of 1.32, indicating that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Lowe's Companies beats Pinduoduo on 13 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE:LOW) and Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) are both large-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, profitability, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

74.5% of Lowe's Companies shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 68.5% of Starbucks shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Lowe's Companies shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of Starbucks shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Lowe's Companies and Starbucks' net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Lowe's Companies and Starbucks' gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Lowe's Companies has higher revenue and earnings than Starbucks. Lowe's Companies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Starbucks, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Lowe's Companies has a beta of 1.45, meaning that its share price is 45% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Starbucks has a beta of 0.79, meaning that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Lowe's Companies pays an annual dividend of $2.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Starbucks pays an annual dividend of $1.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Lowe's Companies pays out 38.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Starbucks pays out 58.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Lowe's Companies has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years and Starbucks has raised its dividend for 9 consecutive years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Lowe's Companies and Starbucks, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

Lowe's Companies currently has a consensus price target of $148.40, indicating a potential downside of 5.25%. Starbucks has a consensus price target of $83.96, indicating a potential upside of 5.89%. Given Starbucks' higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Starbucks is more favorable than Lowe's Companies.

Summary

Lowe's Companies beats Starbucks on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.