Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Bought by Meritage Portfolio Management

Meritage Portfolio Management grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 20,653 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $4,596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Management Group Inc. increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 1,205 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,590 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Hamilton Capital LLC increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Hamilton Capital LLC now owns 2,439 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $507,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Abundance Wealth Counselors increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Abundance Wealth Counselors now owns 6,671 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,485,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,013 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,006,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock traded down $0.33 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $229.96. The company had a trading volume of 1,985,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,513,444. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $239.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $219.43. The stock has a market cap of $131.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.13. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $181.85 and a 1-year high of $262.49.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $18.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.94% and a negative return on equity of 51.42%. Lowe’s Companies’s quarterly revenue was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Barclays upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $203.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $252.52.

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.