Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Trims Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC trimmed its position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 55.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,174 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 35,541 shares during the quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $6,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vertrix Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.6% in the second quarter. Vertrix Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,496 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $5,181,000 after acquiring an additional 374 shares during the period. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 40.9% during the second quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,473 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $821,000 after acquiring an additional 1,009 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 4.1% in the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,149 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 8.7% in the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,797 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the period. Finally, Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 12.6% in the second quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 829 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.83, for a total transaction of $559,575.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president 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 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 9,330 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.81, for a total transaction of $2,097,477.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,628,883.02. The trade was a 36.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 25,980 shares of company stock valued at $5,796,937 in the last three months. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $235.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $315.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $303.00 to $281.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 14th. BTIG Research cut shares of Lowe’s Companies to a “reduce” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $278.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.67.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:LOW opened at $223.03 on Monday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $199.40 and a 52 week high of $293.06. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $214.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $236.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.86.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.06. The business 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%.The company’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.92 earnings per share. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.250-12.750 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd were given a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 22nd. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.27%.

Lowe’s Companies 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.