Sciencast Management LP Buys New Shares in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Sciencast Management LP bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 3,032 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $675,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LOW. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,461,267,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 107,710.7% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,080,039 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,012,147,000 after buying an additional 5,075,327 shares during the period. Providence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 19,964.5% in the first quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,520,122 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $22,604,000 after buying an additional 4,497,594 shares during the period. Macquarie Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 450.8% during the first quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd. now owns 2,556,364 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $511,196,000 after purchasing an additional 2,092,245 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 21.3% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,690,606 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,329,237,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,089 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, EVP Janice Dupre sold 5,380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.28, for a total transaction of $1,244,286.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,600,676.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Janice Dupre sold 5,380 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.28, for a total transaction of $1,244,286.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,600,676.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Joseph Michael Mcfarland sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.53, for a total transaction of $1,001,385.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 46,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,368,562.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on LOW shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $235.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 8th. Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday, September 6th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $270.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $237.48.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $215.44 on Tuesday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $176.50 and a 52 week high of $237.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $227.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $213.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.09.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 22nd. The home improvement retailer reported $4.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.49 by $0.07. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 6.48% and a negative return on equity of 58.56%. The business had revenue of $24.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.67 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 13.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 24th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 43.31%.

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.