Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) Given New $306.00 Price Target at Truist Financial

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) had its target price hoisted by Truist Financial from $269.00 to $306.00 in a research note published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the home improvement retailer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on LOW. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $262.00 to $307.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Lowe’s Companies from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $230.00 to $305.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lowe’s Companies from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Loop Capital raised shares of Lowe’s Companies from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Gordon Haskett reduced 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 note on Wednesday, August 21st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $268.42.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of LOW stock opened at $280.97 on Monday. Lowe’s Companies has a 12 month low of $181.85 and a 12 month high of $281.40. The stock has a market cap of $160.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $253.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.77.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.56 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies will post 11.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total value of $1,684,262.58. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total value of $1,684,262.58. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,334,678.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total transaction of $1,555,408.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares in the company, valued at $3,586,940.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 53,693,630 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $13,677,378,000 after purchasing an additional 2,674,372 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 20,275.6% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,205,014 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,657,000 after purchasing an additional 1,199,100 shares during the period. M&G Plc purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter valued at about $217,995,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 36.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,840,704 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $468,884,000 after purchasing an additional 493,180 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 170.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 735,633 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $162,178,000 after purchasing an additional 463,645 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

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.