Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW Shares Purchased by Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 6.9% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 688,305 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,400 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $160,533,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LOW. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 125,299 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $29,223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 8.1% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 16,551 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,860,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the period. Advent Capital Management DE increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 20.0% during the first quarter. Advent Capital Management DE now owns 18,000 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $4,198,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 12.6% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 29,361 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $6,848,000 after purchasing an additional 3,295 shares during the period. Finally, Community Trust & Investment Co. raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 2.3% during the first quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 55,502 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $12,945,000 after purchasing an additional 1,251 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $253.00 to $242.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total value of $238,938.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,741,462.80. This represents a 2.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.10, for a total value of $10,564,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 249,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,772,256.30. This trade represents a 13.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $258.54 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $235.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $230.23. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $206.38 and a 52-week high of $287.01. The company has a market capitalization of $144.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.87.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.20% and a negative return on equity of 52.02%. The business had revenue of $23.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.10 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 12.200-12.450 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.012 per share. This represents a $0.05 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is presently 39.44%.

Lowe’s Companies 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.