Chatham Capital Group Inc. Sells 3,129 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Chatham Capital Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 11.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,009 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 3,129 shares during the period. Lowe’s Companies makes up about 1.2% of Chatham Capital Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Chatham Capital Group Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $6,371,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the first quarter worth $218,000. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 29.4% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 24,105 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $6,140,000 after purchasing an additional 5,470 shares during the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 9.5% in the first quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,059 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $270,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 26.1% in the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 39,177 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $9,980,000 after buying an additional 8,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 66.7% during the first quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 225 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LOW. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $243.00 to $240.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Zelman & Associates restated a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Monday, March 4th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $251.33.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:LOW traded up $0.66 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $220.46. 12,630,451 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,428,194. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $225.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $228.49. The company has a market cap of $125.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.08. 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 released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.12. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.46% and a negative return on equity of 48.52%. The company had revenue of $21.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. Lowe’s Companies’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 12.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 24th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 24th. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.34%.

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.