Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) Shares Bought by Prudential PLC

Prudential PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 18.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 14,759 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,289 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $3,643,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,979,337 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,952,341,000 after purchasing an additional 245,876 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth $1,842,954,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,186,720 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,033,283,000 after purchasing an additional 385,994 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,459,064 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $853,697,000 after buying an additional 90,012 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,369,942 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $831,702,000 after buying an additional 66,300 shares in the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lowe’s Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $223.05 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $211.80 and a 12 month high of $287.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $242.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $256.46.

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

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on LOW. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $280.35.

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.