Heritage Investors Management Corp Reduces Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Heritage Investors Management Corp lowered its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 129,596 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 437 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for approximately 1.6% of Heritage Investors Management Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $50,412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HD. POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 2,117 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $824,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 4,653 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,810,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the period. Insight Inv LLC lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 2.0% in the third quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 1,246 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $505,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Marino Stram & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Home Depot by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 1,108 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Live Oak Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Live Oak Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,915 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,912,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays upped their price target on Home Depot from $372.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Home Depot from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $356.00 to $410.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $436.50.

Home Depot Stock Performance

NYSE:HD opened at $390.40 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $401.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $398.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The Home Depot, Inc. has a twelve month low of $323.77 and a twelve month high of $439.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $387.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.52, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.09. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $39.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.14%.

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.