Optas LLC Has $286,000 Stock Position in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Optas LLC reduced its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 17.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,290 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 275 shares during the quarter. Optas LLC’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $286,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,609,378 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $12,736,545,000 after purchasing an additional 230,359 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 10.6% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,207,081 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,214,448,000 after acquiring an additional 501,154 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 6.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,111,747 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,192,213,000 after acquiring an additional 330,701 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 6.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,779,120 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $881,406,000 after buying an additional 225,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,501,740 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $816,711,000 after buying an additional 42,676 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LOW opened at $234.59 on Friday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $206.38 and a 52-week high of $287.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $254.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $234.37.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 52.02% and a net margin of 8.20%.The firm had revenue of $23.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.10 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 12.200-12.450 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 22nd will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. This represents a $4.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 22nd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lowe’s Companies news, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 929 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.20, for a total transaction of $238,938.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,741,462.80. This trade represents a 2.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joseph Michael Mcfarland sold 43,810 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.60, for a total value of $11,942,606.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 66,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,145,891.60. This represents a 39.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 92,931 shares of company stock worth $24,945,752 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LOW has been the subject of several recent research reports. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $266.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $269.00 to $294.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.13.

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.