Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Upgraded at Hsbc Global Res

Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Home Depot (NYSE:HD) from a moderate sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on HD. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Home Depot from $431.00 to $424.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $436.50.

Home Depot Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of HD opened at $396.69 on Wednesday. Home Depot has a 52-week low of $323.77 and a 52-week high of $439.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $401.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $398.72. The company has a market capitalization of $394.06 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $2.30 dividend. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,032,910,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,212,546,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 21,394.9% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,039,862 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $793,486,000 after purchasing an additional 2,030,372 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Home Depot by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,149,890 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,726,186,000 after buying an additional 1,424,857 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at $471,189,000. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.