GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. Boosts Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1,511.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 24,349 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,838 shares during the quarter. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $5,419,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LOW. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 60.7% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 760 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the period. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,438,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $507,000. Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth $1,327,000. Finally, Nikulski Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Nikulski Financial Inc. now owns 2,035 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $453,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $232.13 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $132.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50 day moving average of $240.07 and a 200 day moving average of $220.75. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $181.85 and a 1-year high of $262.49.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced 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. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.94% and a negative return on equity of 51.42%. The firm had revenue of $18.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.28 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.21 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $238.00 to $262.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Gordon Haskett reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $245.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $258.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $190.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $218.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $252.52.

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.