Sentry Investment Management LLC Cuts Position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Sentry Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 29.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,416 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 1,427 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $1,384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc raised its holdings in Home Depot by 27.6% in the second quarter. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc now owns 27,155 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $9,348,000 after buying an additional 5,879 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its position in Home Depot by 3.3% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 37,127 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $14,242,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195 shares in the last quarter. Pegasus Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Home Depot by 1.8% in the third quarter. Pegasus Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,994 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,024,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC grew its position in Home Depot by 5.5% in the first quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC now owns 18,628 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $7,146,000 after acquiring an additional 965 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its position in Home Depot by 17.1% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 909,530 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $368,542,000 after acquiring an additional 132,967 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Stock Performance

HD stock opened at $395.57 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $392.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.62, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $392.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $362.47. The Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $286.79 and a fifty-two week high of $421.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.74.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 13th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.59 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $43.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.57 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 733.61%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.65 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were issued a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. Home Depot’s payout ratio is 60.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Daiwa America raised shares of Home Depot to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Home Depot from $377.00 to $363.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $420.00 price target for the company. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded shares of Home Depot from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $360.00 to $460.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $413.48.

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.