Institute for Wealth Management LLC. Has $2.15 Million Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Institute for Wealth Management LLC. decreased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,672 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 61 shares during the period. Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $2,153,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Zhang Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 7,591 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,689,000 after purchasing an additional 943 shares during the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 28,007 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $6,233,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co. boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 2,717 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. HTLF Bank bought a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $5,748,000. Finally, Lafayette Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. now owns 44,224 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $9,842,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the subject of several recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $238.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $252.52.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 0.3 %

Lowe’s Companies stock traded up $0.59 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $229.38. The stock had a trading volume of 1,342,403 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,535,643. The stock has a market cap of $131.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.13. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $181.85 and a one year high of $262.49. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $239.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $218.46.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $18.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 51.42% and a net margin of 8.94%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.28 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.43%.

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.