1,299 Shares in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Bought by Congress Asset Management Co. MA

Congress Asset Management Co. MA bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,299 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $289,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,880 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 18,786.5% in the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 106,709 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $23,748,000 after buying an additional 106,144 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC now owns 215,442 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $47,947,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 824.6% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 15,339 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,414,000 after acquiring an additional 13,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 45,072 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $10,031,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com cut Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Zelman & Associates reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $265.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $271.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $251.33.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW opened at $227.68 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $129.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.08. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $181.85 and a 52 week high of $262.49. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $226.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $227.64.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $21.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.14 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 8.46%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.67 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.26%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 24th. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.34%.

Lowe’s Companies 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.