Willis Johnson & Associates Inc. Makes New $200,000 Investment in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Willis Johnson & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 785 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $200,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LOW. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,880 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 18,786.5% during the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 106,709 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $23,748,000 after purchasing an additional 106,144 shares in the last quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC now owns 215,442 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $47,947,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares in the last quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 824.6% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 15,339 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,414,000 after purchasing an additional 13,680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 45,072 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $10,031,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of LOW opened at $213.30 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $121.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.13, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.08. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $181.85 and a fifty-two week high of $262.49. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $223.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $228.11.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.12. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.46% and a negative return on equity of 48.52%. The company had revenue of $21.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 24th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.28%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $271.00 to $265.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $280.00 price objective for the company. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $250.41.

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.