As previously reported, BMO Capital upgraded Lowe's (LOW) to Outperform and increased its price target to $81 from $73. The firm's State Economic Scoreboard research indicates stronger relative housing improvement and overall economic activity in Southeastern states, where Lowe's has a larger store footprint. The firm said sales to the Pro segment could accelerate and potentially narrow the gap in comp-store sales with Home Depot (HD) if growth broadens in the coming months. Additionally, strengthening Q2 housing metrics and robust relative traffic give the firm increased confidence in its 4% Q2 comp-store sales forecast for Lowe's.