Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Sold by Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. trimmed its holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 11.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,762 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 873 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $24,091,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 120,166 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $26,743,000 after buying an additional 15,517 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 14,188 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,158,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the period. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 3,314 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $737,000 after buying an additional 794 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 56,263 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $12,521,000 after buying an additional 3,466 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on LOW. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $271.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $246.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $250.19.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

LOW traded up $1.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $241.15. 1,725,785 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,529,547. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $229.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $231.75. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $181.85 and a 12 month high of $262.49. The stock has a market cap of $137.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.07.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.12. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 48.52% and a net margin of 8.46%. The firm had revenue of $21.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.23 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 24th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.25%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 24th. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.