Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) to Issue $1.15 Quarterly Dividend

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, March 21st, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a dividend of 1.15 per share by the home improvement retailer on Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%.

Lowe’s Companies has raised its dividend by an average of 14.9% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 53 years. Lowe’s Companies has a dividend payout ratio of 34.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Lowe’s Companies to earn $12.54 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 36.7%.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 0.4 %

LOW stock opened at $227.09 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies has a 1 year low of $211.80 and a 1 year high of $287.01. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $247.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $257.79. The stock has a market cap of $128.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $18.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.29 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.55% and a net margin of 8.19%. On average, analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Lowe’s Companies

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Lowe’s Companies stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 119.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 31,965 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,413 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $7,889,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on LOW. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $292.00 to $285.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $307.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $280.83.

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.