Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Sells 38,126 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,291,401 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 38,126 shares during the period. Home Depot comprises about 2.7% of Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $447,535,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in HD. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 53.3% in the fourth quarter. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 92 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Home Depot in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Home Depot in the third quarter valued at approximately $64,000. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity 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 value 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total transaction of $3,317,185.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,950,123.26. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $380.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $347.00 to $393.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Home Depot in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $415.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $375.96.

Home Depot Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of HD stock opened at $335.01 on Friday. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average is $364.77 and its 200-day moving average is $340.68. The stock has a market cap of $332.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.98. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $274.26 and a 52-week high of $396.87.

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. The company had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 1,452.22%. Home Depot’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is 59.60%.

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.