Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Purchases 71,428 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 3,042.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 73,776 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 71,428 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $17,989,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 630,956 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $152,161,000 after purchasing an additional 21,119 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 446,441 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $107,664,000 after purchasing an additional 25,609 shares during the period. Glenview Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Glenview Trust Co now owns 207,797 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $50,112,000 after purchasing an additional 17,225 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 993,332 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $239,552,000 after purchasing an additional 22,175 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 31,380 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $7,568,000 after purchasing an additional 4,711 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LOW. Craig Hallum upgraded Lowe’s Companies to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Evercore lowered their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $275.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $303.00 to $281.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Benchmark assumed coverage on Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Twenty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $264.57.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW opened at $220.29 on Tuesday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $203.40 and a 52 week high of $293.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $123.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $228.16 and a 200-day moving average of $246.14.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $23.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.98 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 67.96% and a net margin of 7.51%.Lowe’s Companies’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.92 EPS. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.250-12.750 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.48 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be given a $1.25 dividend. This is a boost from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 40.57%.

Lowe’s Companies Company Profile

Lowe’s Companies, Inc is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and digital channels serving both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional contractors. The company offers a broad assortment of products including building materials, lumber, appliances, tools and hardware, plumbing and electrical supplies, paint, flooring, kitchen and bath fixtures, outdoor and garden products, and home decor. Lowe’s also provides a range of services such as installation, home improvement financing, tool and equipment rental, and contractor-focused sales programs.

Operations are centered on a nationwide brick-and-mortar store network supported by distribution centers and an e-commerce platform that enables online ordering, delivery and in-store pickup.