Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-eight ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have assigned a hold recommendation and seventeen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $276.80.

LOW has been the topic of several research reports. Argus lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $286.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 20th. HSBC dropped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $285.00 to $263.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $325.00 to $316.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 20th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lowe’s Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.6% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 154,692 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $34,322,000 after buying an additional 3,947 shares during the period. Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,717,000. First Pacific Financial boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 147.3% during the second quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 2,752 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $611,000 after purchasing an additional 1,639 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.7% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 826,356 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $183,344,000 after purchasing an additional 5,820 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $246.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $138.43 billion, a PE ratio of 20.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.96. Lowe’s Companies has a 52 week low of $206.38 and a 52 week high of $274.98. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $239.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $241.37.

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

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 21st will be given a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 21st. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.80%.

About Lowe’s Companies

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.