Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Grows Holdings in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,507 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,514 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $15,985,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidemark LLC bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Lowe’s Companies during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position in Lowe’s Companies by 93.3% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 145 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in Lowe’s Companies in the first quarter worth $35,000. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LOW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $245.00 to $238.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America dropped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $280.00 to $275.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $252.83.

Lowe’s Companies Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE LOW traded down $0.30 during trading on Friday, reaching $243.81. 1,889,727 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,513,320. 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 market capitalization of $138.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.09.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.96 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.93 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a negative return on equity of 47.07% and a net margin of 8.25%. The firm’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.56 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lowe’s Companies Increases Dividend

The company 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 represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. This is a positive change from Lowe’s Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 23rd. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is currently 36.95%.

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.