Sigma Planning Corp Lowers Position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Sigma Planning Corp cut its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 52.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,635 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 18,342 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $5,765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 18,737,490 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $5,918,425,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698,402 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 1.3% during the 3rd 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 period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth $3,740,875,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 105,205.6% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,994,957 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,472,867,000 after acquiring an additional 10,984,516 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,729,735 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,211,731,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361,660 shares during the period. 70.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of Home Depot stock opened at $335.36 on Monday. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $367.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $339.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $332.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.98. The Home Depot, Inc. has a one year low of $274.26 and a one year high of $396.87.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,452.22% and a net margin of 9.92%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. Analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a $2.25 dividend. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.60%.

Insider Transactions at Home Depot

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of Home Depot 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at $27,950,123.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America increased their price target on Home Depot from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price 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. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Home Depot from $355.00 to $366.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Home Depot from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $370.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. One research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.96.

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.