Haverford Financial Services Inc. Sells 2,933 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Haverford Financial Services Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,537 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 2,933 shares during the quarter. Lowe’s Companies makes up approximately 3.7% of Haverford Financial Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Haverford Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $11,979,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. StoneX Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,713,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 649,601 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $175,944,000 after purchasing an additional 24,812 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 288.6% in the 4th quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 19,028 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,696,000 after purchasing an additional 14,132 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 362,209 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $98,104,000 after purchasing an additional 4,435 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 19,830 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,894,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $270.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Lowe’s Companies to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lowe’s Companies currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $280.83.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Lowe’s Companies stock opened at $227.09 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $247.99 and a 200-day moving average of $257.79. The stock has a market cap of $128.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.12. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $211.80 and a 52-week high of $287.01.

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

Lowe’s Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be paid a $1.15 dividend. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. Lowe’s Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.67%.

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.