Joule Financial LLC Increases Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Joule Financial LLC raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 9.6% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,114 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Joule Financial LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $247,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the first quarter valued at approximately $681,215,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2,984.6% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,038,069 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $475,339,000 after acquiring an additional 1,971,996 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1,048.5% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 739,727 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $172,527,000 after acquiring an additional 675,318 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 49.0% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,881,196 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $438,751,000 after purchasing an additional 618,775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,207,081 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,214,448,000 after purchasing an additional 501,154 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LOW has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $264.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $285.50.

Insider Transactions at Lowe’s Companies

In related news, EVP Joseph Michael Mcfarland sold 43,810 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.60, for a total value of $11,942,606.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 66,566 shares in the company, valued at $18,145,891.60. The trade was a 39.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brandon J. Sink sold 8,192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.58, for a total transaction of $2,200,207.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,603 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,802,133.74. This trade represents a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,931 shares of company stock worth $24,945,752 over the last ninety days. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 0.4%

LOW stock opened at $246.24 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $253.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $234.20. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $206.38 and a 52 week high of $287.01. The company has a market cap of $138.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.88.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $23.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.99 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.20% and a negative return on equity of 52.02%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.10 EPS. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 12.200-12.450 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is presently 39.44%.

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.