The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Sold by WFA of San Diego LLC

WFA of San Diego LLC lessened its stake in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 27.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,041 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 395 shares during the quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kalos Management Inc. purchased a new position in Home Depot in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the first quarter worth about $27,000. KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.34% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Kimberly R. Scardino sold 1,375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.51, for a total transaction of $421,451.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,744 shares in the company, valued at $2,067,103.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Home Depot news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 6,091 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $324.22, for a total value of $1,974,824.02. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,375,680.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Kimberly R. Scardino sold 1,375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.51, for a total value of $421,451.25. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,067,103.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,186 shares of company stock valued at $6,862,827. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HD. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Home Depot from $350.00 to $335.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 15th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Home Depot from $314.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. HSBC began coverage on Home Depot in a research note on Friday, September 22nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $365.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Home Depot from $303.00 to $299.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 15th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $339.57.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HD traded down $0.57 on Monday, reaching $306.70. 334,524 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,613,474. The stock has a market capitalization of $306.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.37, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average is $298.63 and its 200-day moving average is $306.73. The Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $274.26 and a fifty-two week high of $347.25.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 14th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.75 by $0.06. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,339.65% and a net margin of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $37.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.24 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, August 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the home improvement retailer to repurchase up to 4.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 30th will be given a dividend of $2.09 per share. This represents a $8.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 29th. Home Depot’s payout ratio is 53.66%.

About Home Depot

The Home Depot, Inc operates as a home improvement retailer. 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.