Johnson Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Johnson Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 86.6% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,003 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,715 shares during the quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $1,891,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of LOW. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $1,993,697,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,555,565 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,580,941,000 after acquiring an additional 2,039,343 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 7,814.9% in the 4th quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 1,490,369 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $359,417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,471,539 shares in the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $308,683,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 56,230,787 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $13,560,617,000 after acquiring an additional 924,625 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOW has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $260.00 to $255.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Raymond James Financial downgraded Lowe’s Companies from a “market perform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $325.00 to $279.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $228.00 to $202.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $264.57.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of LOW opened at $204.76 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $114.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $216.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $241.29. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $203.40 and a 52 week high of $293.06.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $23.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.98 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 67.96% and a net margin of 7.51%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.92 EPS. Lowe’s Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.250-12.750 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.48 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 22nd will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 22nd. This is a boost from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 40.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Janice Dupre sold 14,150 shares of Lowe’s Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.90, for a total value of $3,139,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,828,291.50. The trade was a 26.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Juliette Williams Pryor sold 9,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.81, for a total transaction of $2,097,477.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 16,142 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,628,883.02. The trade was a 36.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 25,980 shares of company stock worth $5,796,937 over the last three months. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lowe’s Companies Profile

Lowe’s Companies, Inc is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and digital channels serving both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional contractors. The company offers a broad assortment of products including building materials, lumber, appliances, tools and hardware, plumbing and electrical supplies, paint, flooring, kitchen and bath fixtures, outdoor and garden products, and home decor. Lowe’s also provides a range of services such as installation, home improvement financing, tool and equipment rental, and contractor-focused sales programs.

Operations are centered on a nationwide brick-and-mortar store network supported by distribution centers and an e-commerce platform that enables online ordering, delivery and in-store pickup.