Hughes Financial Services LLC Purchases Shares of 264 Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 264 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $62,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gen Wealth Partners Inc raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 2,163 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,286 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Second Line Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 4,793 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,183,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Dumont & Blake Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,570 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,066,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peoples Financial Services CORP. grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Peoples Financial Services CORP. now owns 2,763 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of LOW stock opened at $224.12 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $224.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $234.03. The company has a market capitalization of $125.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.90. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $206.39 and a 12-month high of $287.01.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $2.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.04. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.22% and a negative return on equity of 49.12%. The company had revenue of $20.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.06 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 23rd will be given a $1.20 dividend. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.14%. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is presently 38.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 1,130 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.50, for a total value of $257,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,256,795. The trade was a 3.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LOW. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Truist Financial set a $264.00 price objective on Lowe’s Companies and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. KeyCorp upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $266.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $253.00 price objective (down previously from $269.00) on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $300.00 to $263.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $271.12.

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.