The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-six research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and eighteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $376.35.

HD has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $390.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wedbush raised their price target on Home Depot from $380.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays raised Home Depot from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $325.00 to $372.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In other news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $39,712,878.53. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were 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 $27,950,123.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of Home Depot 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at $39,712,878.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Home Depot

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Home Depot by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 18,737,490 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $5,918,425,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698,402 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Home Depot by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,765,587 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $5,117,016,000 after buying an additional 992,444 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Home Depot by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,217,777 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $4,540,197,000 after acquiring an additional 347,614 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,311,070,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 1.3% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,347,396 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,730,889,000 after acquiring an additional 153,141 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HD opened at $342.87 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $369.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $338.32. The company has a market cap of $339.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.98. Home Depot has a 12-month low of $274.26 and a 12-month high of $396.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.30 earnings per share. Home Depot’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Home Depot will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.60%.

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.