Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Shares Up 0.1% – Here’s Why

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)’s stock price shot up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $409.51 and last traded at $409.03. 418,059 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 3,033,450 shares. The stock had previously closed at $408.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on HD shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Home Depot from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Home Depot from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Telsey Advisory Group upgraded shares of Home Depot from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $360.00 to $455.00 in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on Home Depot from $430.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $426.00.

Home Depot Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $411.18 billion, a PE ratio of 28.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $406.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $393.55.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.64 by $0.14. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $40.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.81 earnings per share. Home Depot’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.12 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th were issued a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 27th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.14%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 16,004 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $6,553,958.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 77,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,727,562. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 22,084 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.91, for a total transaction of $9,030,368.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,343,399.64. This trade represents a 51.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,188 shares of company stock worth $15,624,585 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Home Depot

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HD. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Home Depot by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 102 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Home Depot during the third quarter valued at about $41,000. 70.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.