Lowe’s Companies Inc’s (NYSE:LOW) execution remained strong and consistent in a challenging operating environment due to COVID-19, which indicates that the company can “invest further in its long-term initiatives including superior in-stock levels which are critical to Pros,” according to BofA Securities.
The Lowe’s Analyst: Elizabeth Suzuki maintained a Buy rating on Lowe’s, while keeping the price target unchanged at $292.
The Lowe’s Thesis: The company reported its fourth-quarter same-store sales growth and earnings ahead of the consensus, Suzuki said in the note.
“Sales to Pro customers grew 23% YoY while sales to DIY customers were below average, as expected,” she added.
“The divergence this quarter in Pro vs. DIY trends is consistent with what we have been tracking in our weekly data series,” the analyst wrote. Lowe’s raised its outlook for 2022 and the upward revision to guidance “this early in the year is encouraging,” she added.
The analyst further mentioned that the company is “particularly attractive in this environment” due to its:
- Opportunity for market share gains
- Idiosyncratic margin growth
- Share repurchase capacity
- Dividend growth
LOW Price Action: Shares of Lowe’s had risen by 3.98% to $222.92 at the time of publication Wednesday.
Photo: Courtesy of Mike Mozart on Flickr
