Veracity Capital LLC Increases Stock Position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Veracity Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 74.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,564 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,953 shares during the quarter. Home Depot makes up 0.7% of Veracity Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Veracity Capital LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $1,751,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 3rd quarter worth about $720,000. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 75,489 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $22,810,000 after buying an additional 1,737 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 396,490 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $119,801,000 after buying an additional 13,838 shares during the last quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 14,974 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $4,525,000 after buying an additional 669 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 106,558 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $32,198,000 after buying an additional 11,535 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of HD opened at $333.00 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $338.48 and its 200-day moving average is $352.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $330.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.11, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12-month low of $274.26 and a 12-month high of $396.87.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 14th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.02. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.79% and a return on equity of 1,056.67%. The company had revenue of $36.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.82 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 30th were issued a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 30th. Home Depot’s payout ratio is 60.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on HD. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Home Depot from $425.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. HSBC reduced their price target on shares of Home Depot from $323.00 to $318.00 and set a “reduce” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $415.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $378.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Matt Carey sold 56,008 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $345.18, for a total transaction of $19,332,841.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,325 shares in the company, valued at $11,503,123.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.