Panagora Asset Management Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Panagora Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 12.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,866 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 1,258 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,955,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,880 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 18,786.5% during the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 106,709 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $23,748,000 after buying an additional 106,144 shares during the last quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 824.6% in the 4th quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 15,339 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,414,000 after buying an additional 13,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 216,958 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $55,266,000 after buying an additional 20,181 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $264.00 to $262.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com raised Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $254.04.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $248.50 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.07. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $181.85 and a 1 year high of $262.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $233.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $233.32.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.46% and a negative return on equity of 48.52%. The business’s revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.56 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.23 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 36.95%.

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.