Mooresville-based home improvement retailer Lowe's Inc. said Monday that it is streamlining and consolidating the company's upper management, as the company trails Home Depot in most recent performance measures.

Three senior vice presidents, Theresa Anderson, Robert Wagner and Patricia Price, are leaving the company as a result of the changes, Lowe's said. A fourth senior vice president, Eric Sowder, will retire in Sept., a move that was previously announced.

Lowe's is reducing the overall number of geographical divisions its stores operate under to three, a North, South and West division. Within those divisions, Lowe's is cutting the overall number of geographical regions from 21 to 14.

The company's merchandising operations are also being split into two divisions, one for building and outdoor products and one for kitchen, bath and home decor.

The reorganization will help "ensure greater consistency and efficiency," said Lowe's, in a statement. The new structure will also help Lowe's increase the speed with which new products get to markets, the company said.

The move comes as Lowe's has struggled to keep up with larger, Atlanta-based rival Home Depot. This month, Lowe's reported that its second-quarter profit dipped slightly compared to the same quarter last year, and cut its forecast for the rest of the year, blaming sluggish economic conditions. Sales at stores open a year or more, considered a key measure of a retailer's health, also fell slightly.

Home Depot, on the other hand, posted results that bested analyst's expectations, with both profits and same-store sales growing. The retailer also raised its forecast for the rest of year.

Monday's management changes are Lowe's second management-streamlining effort this year. In January, the company eliminated some 1,700 middle managers, or about one per store. The move was designed to help flatten in-store management structures, the company said.

Wayne Hood, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, said in a note to clients Monday night that he expected the move to have a "neutral" impact on Lowe's stock, which is down more than 19 percent year-to-date.

Hood noted that Lowe's new organizational structure brings it into closer alignment with the way Home Depot organizes its U.S. operations.