Royal Bank of Canada Has Lowered Expectations for Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) Stock Price

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) had its price target decreased by investment analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $292.00 to $285.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector perform” rating on the home improvement retailer’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price indicates a potential upside of 15.73% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on LOW. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LOW traded down $0.80 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $246.27. The stock had a trading volume of 663,988 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,338,263. Lowe’s Companies has a twelve month low of $211.80 and a twelve month high of $287.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $252.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $258.86. The firm has a market cap of $139.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.11.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.29 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. Equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lowe’s Companies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LOW. FMR LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,270,496 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $6,483,558,000 after acquiring an additional 259,766 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,013,655 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $6,774,948,000 after buying an additional 460,851 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,979,337 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,952,341,000 after acquiring an additional 245,876 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,842,954,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,391 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,745,960,000 after acquiring an additional 993,833 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.