The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Sold by Fiduciary Group LLC

Fiduciary Group LLC lessened its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 8.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 34,860 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 3,254 shares during the period. Home Depot makes up 1.4% of Fiduciary Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Fiduciary Group LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $12,081,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HD. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Home Depot by 12,647.4% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,569,482 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,930,104,000 after purchasing an additional 5,525,791 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Home Depot by 38.4% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,207,388 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Home Depot during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $207,210,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Home Depot by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,468,902 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $746,003,000 after purchasing an additional 421,619 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System increased its position in Home Depot by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 3,418,400 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,032,904,000 after purchasing an additional 346,641 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on HD shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on Home Depot from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Mizuho started coverage on Home Depot in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $415.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Home Depot from $299.00 to $377.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Zelman & Associates raised Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Home Depot from $335.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $375.96.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In other Home Depot 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total value of $3,317,185.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $13,265,887.81. Following the completion of the transaction, 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.

Home Depot Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of HD stock traded up $3.11 on Friday, reaching $335.09. 2,465,262 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,779,238. The stock has a market cap of $332.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $364.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $340.97. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $274.26 and a 1-year high of $396.87.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.05. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,452.22% and a net margin of 9.92%. The business had revenue of $34.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate 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 issued a $2.25 dividend. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.60%.

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.