Covea Finance Sells 4,300 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Covea Finance reduced its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 109,642 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 4,300 shares during the quarter. Covea Finance’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $27,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Solstein Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 627.8% in the 2nd quarter. Solstein Capital LLC now owns 131 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 128.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 135 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the second quarter worth about $33,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LOW shares. Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $308.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.80.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:LOW opened at $242.75 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $206.38 and a twelve month high of $274.98. The company has a market cap of $136.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $239.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $240.23.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.05% and a negative return on equity of 55.86%. The firm had revenue of $20.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.89 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 21st. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

Lowe’s Companies Profile

Lowe’s Companies, Inc is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and digital channels serving both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional contractors. The company offers a broad assortment of products including building materials, lumber, appliances, tools and hardware, plumbing and electrical supplies, paint, flooring, kitchen and bath fixtures, outdoor and garden products, and home decor. Lowe’s also provides a range of services such as installation, home improvement financing, tool and equipment rental, and contractor-focused sales programs.

Operations are centered on a nationwide brick-and-mortar store network supported by distribution centers and an e-commerce platform that enables online ordering, delivery and in-store pickup.