Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 347,614 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 13,217,777 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 347,614 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for about 1.2% of Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $4,540,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tcwp LLC grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 0.7% during the third quarter. Tcwp LLC now owns 6,409 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,937,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Home Depot by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 18,032 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $5,449,000 after purchasing an additional 2,605 shares in the last quarter. Affinity Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Affinity Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,166 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $5,187,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the third quarter worth approximately $457,000. Finally, Channel Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Home Depot by 2.4% in the third quarter. Channel Wealth LLC now owns 4,365 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,319,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of HD traded down $1.57 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $339.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 893,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,316,943. The Home Depot, Inc. has a one year low of $274.26 and a one year high of $396.87. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $360.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $343.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $336.07 billion, a PE ratio of 22.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.64 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,452.22% and a net margin of 9.92%. The company’s revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Home Depot

In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total transaction of $13,265,887.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $13,265,887.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total value of $3,317,185.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at $27,950,123.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on HD shares. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Tuesday. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Monday, April 1st. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $390.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Bank of America upped their price target on Home Depot from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Home Depot from $415.00 to $395.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $375.19.

About Home Depot

The Home Depot, Inc operates as a home improvement retailer in the United States and internationally. It sells various building materials, home improvement products, lawn and garden products, and décor products, as well as facilities maintenance, repair, and operations products. The company also offers installation services for flooring, water heaters, bath, garage doors, cabinets, cabinet makeovers, countertops, sheds, furnaces and central air systems, and windows.