Retirement Systems of Alabama Has $66.63 Million Stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 299,390 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 5,306 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.05% of Lowe’s Companies worth $66,629,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the third quarter worth about $26,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 85.4% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 152 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LOW traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $229.87. 2,001,196 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,110,073. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.13. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $181.85 and a 52 week high of $262.49. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $239.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.82.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 51.42% and a net margin of 8.94%. The firm had revenue of $18.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.28 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Wedbush upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $199.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $252.52.

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.