Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Sold by Fosun International Ltd

Fosun International Ltd cut its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 17.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,900 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 400 shares during the period. Fosun International Ltd’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $423,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 85.4% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 152 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the third quarter valued at $40,000. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LOW. UBS Group upped their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $235.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Zelman & Associates reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $252.67.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of LOW traded up $4.29 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $236.36. 221,422 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,418,626. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $181.85 and a 52-week high of $262.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $240.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $221.68. The company has a market cap of $135.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.15.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $18.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.94% and a negative return on equity of 51.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.28 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th were paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.43%.

Lowe’s Companies Company 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.