Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Shares Up 1.7%

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) shares were up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $372.22 and last traded at $371.64. Approximately 496,592 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 3,428,638 shares. The stock had previously closed at $365.36.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on HD shares. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $410.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Friday, May 10th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Home Depot from $415.00 to $395.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Home Depot from $425.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Home Depot from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 25th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on Home Depot from $440.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $386.33.

Home Depot Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $372.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $353.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $353.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 23.11, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 13th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.59 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $43.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.57 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,056.67% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.28 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th will be given a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 29th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Home Depot by 7.2% during the fourth 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 position in Home Depot by 2.7% during the fourth 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 buying an additional 347,614 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth about $4,311,070,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Home Depot by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,802,085 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,050,363,000 after buying an additional 195,670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,515,343 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,931,328,000 after purchasing an additional 100,139 shares in the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.