Mizuho Issues Positive Forecast for Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) Stock Price

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) had its target price increased by Mizuho from $280.00 to $282.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the home improvement retailer’s stock.

LOW has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Loop Capital upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $275.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.92.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $264.63 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $150.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.07, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.10. Lowe’s Companies has a 12 month low of $196.23 and a 12 month high of $287.01. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $268.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $244.73.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.56 EPS. Research analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.37%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total value of $1,555,408.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 13,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,586,940.30. The trade was a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total transaction of $1,684,262.58. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. This represents a 41.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lowe’s Companies

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LOW. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,010,730 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $7,045,006,000 after acquiring an additional 2,399,897 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1,889.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,134,969 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $578,256,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,668 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 1,199,100 shares in the last quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 387.7% during the third quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 811,374 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $219,761,000 after purchasing an additional 645,017 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% during 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 buying an additional 493,180 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently 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.