Nixon Peabody Trust Co. Has $13.03 Million Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 48,102 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 360 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $13,028,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LOW. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 3.8% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 14,593 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,952,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. Semus Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Lowe’s Companies by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,031 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $821,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,950 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $528,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital City Trust Co. FL boosted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital City Trust Co. FL now owns 1,763 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $478,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total value of $1,555,408.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,586,940.30. This represents a 30.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $248.82, for a total value of $1,684,262.58. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,334,678.06. The trade was a 41.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LOW shares. Telsey Advisory Group upgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $306.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.84.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Lowe’s Companies stock traded up $1.35 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $270.75. The stock had a trading volume of 106,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,429,481. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.23 and a 1-year high of $287.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $267.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $243.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.10.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.96 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.56 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 23rd were given a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 23rd. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is currently 38.14%.

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.