Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW Shares Purchased by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 76.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,156 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,691 shares during the quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $2,908,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Frederick Financial Consultants LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.0% during the second quarter. Frederick Financial Consultants LLC now owns 1,232 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.3% during the second quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC now owns 34,922 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $7,749,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the period. Lifeworks Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 4.8% during the second quarter. Lifeworks Advisors LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.4% during the second quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 8,823 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,958,000 after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the period. Finally, Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 4.4% during the second quarter. Mccarter Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $681,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of LOW stock opened at $238.29 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $133.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $253.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $236.38. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $206.38 and a 1-year high of $280.64.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $23.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.99 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 52.02% and a net margin of 8.20%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.10 EPS. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 12.200-12.450 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.10, for a total transaction of $10,564,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 249,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,772,256.30. The trade was a 13.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total value of $238,938.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,741,462.80. The trade was a 2.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 92,931 shares of company stock valued at $24,945,752. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LOW. Mizuho boosted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 29th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Lowe’s Companies to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Barclays set a $267.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $282.59.

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.