Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 116,003 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,492,941 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 116,003 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $329,134,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. Waycross Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $12,950,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Lowe’s Companies by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 28,331 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $6,246,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners increased its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 13.8% in the 2nd quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 5,165 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,139,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 3.5% in the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 6,524 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,438,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Providence Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.7% during the second quarter. Providence Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,220 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,557,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on LOW shares. Gordon Haskett decreased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $238.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lowe’s Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $252.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:LOW opened at $256.64 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $146.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.10. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $181.85 and a fifty-two week high of $262.49. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $240.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $234.86.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.25% and a negative return on equity of 47.07%. The company had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.56 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.93 EPS for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is an increase from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.95%.

Insider Activity at Lowe’s Companies

In other Lowe’s Companies news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.