The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Sold by Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank lessened its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,809 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 457 shares during the period. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $7,211,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of HD. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,740,875,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 105,205.6% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,994,957 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,472,867,000 after purchasing an additional 10,984,516 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 12,647.4% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,569,482 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,930,104,000 after purchasing an additional 5,525,791 shares during the period. Comerica Bank purchased a new stake in Home Depot in the second quarter valued at approximately $7,703,690,000. Finally, Imprint Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 30,994.4% in the second quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 2,413,234 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $241,323,000 after purchasing an additional 2,405,473 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on HD. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Home Depot from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Wedbush boosted their target price 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. Barclays upgraded shares of Home Depot from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $325.00 to $372.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Robert W. Baird restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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 note on Monday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $376.35.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Home Depot news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,712,878.53. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at $27,950,123.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of HD stock opened at $350.16 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $347.01 billion, a PE ratio of 23.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $370.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $337.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94. The Home Depot, Inc. has a twelve month low of $274.26 and a twelve month high of $396.87.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.05. The firm 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. 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.