Sanford C. Bernstein Cuts Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) Price Target to $301.00

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) had its price objective lowered by equities research analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $306.00 to $301.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the home improvement retailer’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 14.89% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Oppenheimer raised Lowe’s Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $230.00 to $305.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Lowe’s Companies from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $255.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 price target on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research report on Tuesday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $277.92.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 1.1 %

LOW traded up $2.73 on Wednesday, reaching $261.99. 1,121,847 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,442,700. The company has a market cap of $148.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.10. Lowe’s Companies has a one year low of $196.23 and a one year high of $287.01. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $267.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $244.23.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $23.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.56 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lowe’s Companies will post 11.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Lowe’s Companies

In related news, CAO Dan Clayton Griggs, Jr. sold 6,769 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 9,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,678.06. This represents a 41.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Margrethe R. Vagell sold 5,730 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.45, for a total transaction of $1,555,408.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 13,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,586,940.30. This trade represents a 30.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lowe’s Companies

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Guardian Capital LP lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 2.5% in the first quarter. Guardian Capital LP now owns 7,588 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,933,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 18.6% in the first quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,410 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $359,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies during the 1st quarter worth about $2,769,000. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 14.5% during the first quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 931 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Linscomb Wealth Inc. lifted its position in Lowe’s Companies by 7.0% in the first quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 13,621 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,470,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. 74.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.