Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 2,084 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System cut its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 30,939 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 2,084 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $7,636,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. United Bank grew its position in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 10,099 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,735,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,403 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $922,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC grew its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 15,427 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $4,178,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Knuff & Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OneAscent Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $994,000. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $305.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $307.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $280.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

LOW stock opened at $222.96 on Wednesday. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $211.80 and a fifty-two week high of $287.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $249.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $258.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.60, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $18.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.29 billion. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.19% and a negative return on equity of 47.55%. Equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.