LOW LOWES COMPANIES INC

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Executive Summary

Citigroup issued a rare double upgrade from Neutral to Buy on May 12, 2026, maintaining a $285 price target. The stock trades at $226.06, offering 26% upside to the target. Citigroup has a 100% accuracy rate on 3 calls for this ticker, with an average return of 6.3%, placing it in the top tier among covering firms. Consensus is bullish: 79% Buy (26 of 41 ratings), 17% Hold, 2% Sell. The mean target is $285.06, median $290, high $325, low $228. Citigroup's PT is exactly in line with the mean. Momentum is quiet — only 1 upgrade in 30 days, no downgrades. EPS revisions are mixed: 4 up vs 13 down for the current quarter, but stable for the full year. Insider and congressional trades show no activity. Institutional moves are mixed: Norges Bank exited, Renaissance Technologies exited, while Two Sigma doubled its position. Short interest is elevated at 61.5% of float. Earnings are due May 19, 2026 — just 7 days away — adding a timing catalyst. The double upgrade from a top-tier firm with a perfect track record is a strong contrarian signal against the bearish short interest and mixed institutional flows.

Impact Score

Consensus & Targets

Consensus is heavily bullish: 10 Strong Buy, 16 Buy, 14 Hold, 1 Sell, 0 Strong Sell — that's 79% Buy, 17% Hold, 2% Sell across 41 analysts. Citigroup's Buy aligns with the majority view, but the double upgrade from a previously Neutral stance makes it a more aggressive call than the consensus average.

Current price: $226.06. Mean target: $285.06 (implied upside +26.1%). Median: $290. High: $325 (+43.8%). Low: $228 (+0.9%). Citigroup's $285 PT is exactly at the mean, so it is in line with consensus. The wide range ($228-$325) reflects significant disagreement among analysts.

Recent Analyst Activity

30-day analyst activity: 1 upgrade (Citigroup), 0 downgrades. EPS revisions are mixed: for the current quarter (0q), 3 revisions up vs 16 down over 30 days; for next quarter (+1q), 4 up vs 13 down. Full-year 0y estimates are stable: 1 up, 1 down. The net revision trend is slightly negative near-term but flat for the full year.

Firm Track Record — Citigroup

Citigroup accuracy: 55% on 4355 calls | avg return: 4.9%

Industry benchmark: mean 51% ± 11%. Top tier: ≥61% (mean + 1σ). Based on 15 firms with ≥5 scored calls.

Citigroup has a 100% accuracy rate on 3 calls for this stock, with an average return of 6.3%, ranking top tier. Among all covering firms, the best performers are Morgan Stanley (100% on 2 calls, avg return 8.0%), Evercore ISI (75% on 12 calls, avg return 7.4%), and JP Morgan (71% on 7 calls, avg return 9.5%). The worst performers are Keybanc (50% on 2 calls, avg return -2.3%) and Oppenheimer (50% on 2 calls, avg return -1.3%). Citigroup's track record is excellent but based on a small sample.

Earnings Estimates

Next earnings: May 19, 2026

Cross-Platform Signals

Insider trades: none. Congressional trades: none. Institutional changes: Norges Bank exited (sold entire position), Renaissance Technologies exited, Two Sigma Investments doubled its position (+558.4% to $57.7M). Short interest is very high at 61.5% of float (short ratio 61.5%), indicating heavy bearish positioning. The analyst upgrade diverges from the short interest and mixed institutional flows, but the double upgrade from a top-tier firm may signal a contrarian opportunity.

Documents Analyzed

Report based on filing metadata.

US Market Status