Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Shares Down 1.5%

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) fell 1.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $333.12 and last traded at $334.00. 789,720 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 3,318,877 shares. The stock had previously closed at $339.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on HD. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Home Depot from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. HSBC reaffirmed a “reduce” rating and issued a $323.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $335.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $417.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $415.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Home Depot has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $375.96.

Home Depot Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $330.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.98. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $366.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $340.51.

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

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.60%.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In related news, 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,712,878.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HD. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth $4,311,070,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Home Depot by 12,647.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,569,482 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,930,104,000 after acquiring an additional 5,525,791 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 38.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,347,596 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,506,659,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207,388 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,765,587 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $5,117,016,000 after purchasing an additional 992,444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the third quarter valued at approximately $207,210,000. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

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.