Park Avenue Securities LLC Buys 2,196 Shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW - Free Report) by 21.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,409 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 2,196 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in Lowe's Companies were worth $3,062,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LOW. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,010,730 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $7,045,006,000 after purchasing an additional 2,399,897 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Lowe's Companies by 1.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,013,655 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $6,774,948,000 after buying an additional 460,851 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,733,461 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $3,169,041,000 after buying an additional 187,473 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,205,491 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,147,603,000 after buying an additional 82,978 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lowe's Companies by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,369,052 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $912,508,000 after acquiring an additional 39,953 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Lowe's Companies from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Lowe's Companies in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $290.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Lowe's Companies from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Lowe's Companies from $275.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $280.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe's Companies

In other news, EVP Quonta D. Vance sold 7,198 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.37, for a total value of $1,974,915.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,703 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,582,802.11. The trade was a 30.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

Lowe's Companies Price Performance

LOW stock traded up $2.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $261.39. 2,758,504 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,379,644. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $260.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $253.98. Lowe's Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $209.55 and a 12 month high of $287.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $147.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.11.

Lowe's Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 22nd will be given a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 22nd. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. Lowe's Companies's payout ratio is 38.37%.

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.