Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on HD. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $415.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $355.00 to $366.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $370.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $370.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded Home Depot from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $375.96.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of HD stock opened at $332.83 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The company has a market capitalization of $329.84 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $368.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $339.01. Home Depot has a 12 month low of $274.26 and a 12 month 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, beating 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 firm had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.30 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Home Depot will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was 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 directly owns 107,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the business’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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,950,123.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Home Depot in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, PFG Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Home Depot by 53.3% in the fourth quarter. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 92 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

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.