First Command Advisory Services Inc. Increases Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

First Command Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 27.4% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,443 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 740 shares during the quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LOW. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $681,215,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2,984.6% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,038,069 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $475,339,000 after buying an additional 1,971,996 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 49.0% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,881,196 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $438,751,000 after buying an additional 618,775 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,207,081 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,214,448,000 after buying an additional 501,154 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,111,747 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,192,213,000 after buying an additional 330,701 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Lowe’s Companies news, EVP Joseph Michael Mcfarland sold 43,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.60, for a total value of $11,942,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 66,566 shares in the company, valued at $18,145,891.60. The trade was a 39.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total transaction of $238,938.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,741,462.80. This trade represents a 2.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 92,931 shares of company stock worth $24,945,752. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LOW. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Saturday. Barclays set a $267.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $282.91.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of LOW stock opened at $243.06 on Monday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $206.38 and a 12 month high of $280.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $136.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $254.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $235.72.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $23.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.10 EPS. The firm’s 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be issued a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 22nd. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is currently 39.44%.

Lowe’s Companies Company 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.