Norway Savings Bank Grows Stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Norway Savings Bank raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,144 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the quarter. Norway Savings Bank’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $2,029,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 60.0% during the first quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $271.89 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $206.38 and a 12 month high of $287.01. The stock has a market cap of $152.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $243.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $231.83.

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

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

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 given a dividend of $0.012 per share. This represents a $0.05 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is presently 39.44%.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $266.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.13.

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.