Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) rose 1.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $345.51 and last traded at $344.52. Approximately 811,241 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 3,313,907 shares. The stock had previously closed at $338.83.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler upgraded Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $311.00 to $400.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $360.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $370.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Home Depot from $347.00 to $393.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $375.19.

Home Depot Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $359.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $343.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94. The stock has a market cap of $344.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.05. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,452.22% and a net margin of 9.92%. The firm had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is 59.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, 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 SEC, which is available through this link. In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total transaction 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 approximately $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $13,265,887.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HD. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in Home Depot by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,963 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $680,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. STAR Financial Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. STAR Financial Bank now owns 3,944 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,367,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 0.8% during the third quarter. Harvest Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,815 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Armstrong Henry H Associates Inc. now owns 10,903 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,778,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Company Profile

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.