Anchor Investment Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.4% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 44,376 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 604 shares during the quarter. Lowe’s Companies accounts for about 1.0% of Anchor Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $9,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 69.3% during the 2nd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 74,500 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $16,424,000 after buying an additional 30,500 shares during the last quarter. Verity & Verity LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.7% in the second quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 32,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $7,194,000 after acquiring an additional 857 shares during the period. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 5.5% during the second quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 6,764 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,491,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Cannon Financial Strategists Inc. purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies during the second quarter valued at $218,000. Finally, Heritage Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the second quarter worth about $227,000. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

NYSE LOW opened at $271.97 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.98 billion, a PE ratio of 21.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.10. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $181.85 and a 1-year high of $274.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $248.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $236.73.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The company had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.56 earnings per share. Lowe’s Companies’s quarterly revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. This is a boost from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LOW. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $238.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $230.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Gordon Haskett cut their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com raised Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $263.54.

Insider Activity at Lowe’s Companies

In other Lowe’s Companies news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total transaction of $1,684,262.58. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,334,678.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.