IFM Investors Pty Ltd Acquires 3,733 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 3.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 124,004 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,733 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $29,300,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LOW. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 56,230,787 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $13,560,617,000 after buying an additional 924,625 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,036,276 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $6,291,867,000 after acquiring an additional 124,501 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,326,581 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,201,329,000 after acquiring an additional 887,579 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $1,993,697,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,830,080 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,716,467,000 after purchasing an additional 103,827 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $255.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wolfe Research set a $254.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $294.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $228.00 to $202.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $292.00 to $277.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Twenty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $264.57.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:LOW opened at $220.37 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $223.18 and its 200-day moving average is $244.22. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.40 and a 1-year high of $293.06. The stock has a market cap of $123.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.87.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.06. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 7.51% and a negative return on equity of 67.96%. The business had revenue of $23.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.92 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 22nd. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is 42.27%.

Insider Transactions at Lowe’s Companies

In related news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 9,330 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.81, for a total value of $2,097,477.30. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 16,142 shares in the company, valued at $3,628,883.02. This represents a 36.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.83, for a total value of $559,575.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,525,842.60. This represents a 11.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,980 shares of company stock worth $5,796,937. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

About Lowe’s Companies

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.