Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. Cuts Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,834 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 115 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for 1.5% of Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $2,269,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HD. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,212,546,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 21,394.9% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,039,862 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $793,486,000 after acquiring an additional 2,030,372 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 95,763,752 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $37,251,142,000 after acquiring an additional 875,836 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 3rd quarter valued at $336,231,000. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 7,554,880 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,925,498,000 after purchasing an additional 599,490 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Home Depot Price Performance

HD opened at $362.01 on Thursday. 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 market cap of $359.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $391.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $398.90. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12-month low of $323.77 and a 12-month high of $439.37.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.09. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The company had revenue of $39.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.15 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.82 EPS. Home Depot’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $2.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.54%. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on HD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Home Depot from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $356.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Home Depot currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.85.

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.