Missouri Trust & Investment Co Sells 212 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Missouri Trust & Investment Co trimmed its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 4.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,093 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 212 shares during the period. Missouri Trust & Investment Co’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,188,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,842,954,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 350.2% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,373,460 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $585,770,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846,315 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 26,796.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,657,332 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $386,540,000 after purchasing an additional 1,651,170 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter worth $314,435,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in 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 buying an additional 993,833 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lowe’s Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total transaction of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 31,898 shares in the company, valued at $7,256,795. This represents a 3.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $216.99 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $223.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $239.88. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $206.39 and a fifty-two week high of $287.01. The company has a market cap of $121.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.92.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.06 EPS. Lowe’s Companies’s quarterly revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 23rd. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $280.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Friday. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $300.00 to $263.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $295.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $271.12.

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.