58,742 Shares in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Purchased by Waycross Partners LLC

Waycross Partners LLC bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 58,742 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $12,950,000. Lowe’s Companies accounts for about 2.0% of Waycross Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,693,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $13,677,378,000 after purchasing an additional 2,674,372 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 20,275.6% in the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,205,014 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,657,000 after buying an additional 1,199,100 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the first quarter valued at about $217,995,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $126,615,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,840,704 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $468,884,000 after acquiring an additional 493,180 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com raised Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $252.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE LOW opened at $255.41 on Monday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $181.85 and a 52 week high of $262.49. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $240.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $234.75. The company has a market cap of $144.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.56 EPS. Lowe’s Companies’s revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.95%.

About Lowe’s Companies

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.