Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Acquired by W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.

W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 12.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,714 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 637 shares during the period. Lowe’s Companies makes up approximately 1.0% of W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,272,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 187,225.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 2,111,159 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $438,783,000 after purchasing an additional 2,110,032 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $430,090,000. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 189.5% in the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,798,268 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $581,592,000 after acquiring an additional 1,831,727 shares during the period. Aristotle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 143.8% in the third quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 1,361,716 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $283,019,000 after acquiring an additional 803,216 shares during the period. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $144,530,000. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOW has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $238.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Wedbush raised their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $252.52.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE:LOW traded up $2.55 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $232.13. The company had a trading volume of 1,834,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,044,726. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $181.85 and a 1 year high of $262.49. The company has a market cap of $132.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $240.07 and a 200 day moving average of $221.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.94% and a negative return on equity of 51.42%. The firm had revenue of $18.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.28 earnings per share. Lowe’s Companies’s quarterly revenue was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.43%.

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.