Highland Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,240 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 1,690 shares during the quarter. Lowe’s Companies comprises about 1.2% of Highland Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $19,193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 9.8% in the first quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. United Bank grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.8% in the first quarter. United Bank now owns 9,734 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,968,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the first quarter worth about $1,629,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.4% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 256,098 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $51,780,000 after purchasing an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 74.6% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 295 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on LOW. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $203.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $240.00 to $225.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $251.60.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $253.33 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $231.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.72.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.43%.

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.