J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Decreases Stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,363 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 669 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $6,017,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Home Depot by 53.3% during the 4th quarter. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 92 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 70.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of Home Depot 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total value of $3,317,185.04. Following 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 corporate insiders.

Home Depot Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of HD opened at $335.36 on Friday. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $274.26 and a 52-week 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. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $367.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $339.54. The stock has a market cap of $332.35 billion, a PE ratio of 22.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.98.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. 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 payout ratio is 59.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler raised shares of Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $311.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $380.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.96.

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.