Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 6,292 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 475,633 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 6,292 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $164,902,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of HD. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 214.3% during the third quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 47,514 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $14,357,000 after acquiring an additional 32,395 shares during the period. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 6.6% during the third quarter. B.O.S.S. Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 10,248 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,096,000 after acquiring an additional 636 shares during the period. KFG Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 1.8% in the third quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,571 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $777,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period. Nikulski Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 0.7% in the third quarter. Nikulski Financial Inc. now owns 7,522 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,273,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 241.7% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 23,738 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $7,173,000 after buying an additional 16,790 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HD traded up $3.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $335.09. 2,465,262 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,779,238. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $364.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $340.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $332.08 billion, a PE ratio of 22.19, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total transaction of $13,265,887.81. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,712,878.53. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at $39,712,878.53. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,950,123.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $370.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $299.00 to $377.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $417.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $375.96.

Home Depot 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.