Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Trading Up 2.9% – Still a Buy?

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) shares rose 2.9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $361.77 and last traded at $361.50. Approximately 956,123 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 3,207,596 shares. The stock had previously closed at $351.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. 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, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Home Depot currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.85.

Home Depot Trading Up 2.8 %

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $393.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $399.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market capitalization of $358.45 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $2.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Home Depot

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SYM FINANCIAL Corp increased its stake in Home Depot by 17.8% during the 3rd quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,917 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $777,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the period. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 17.1% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 909,530 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $368,542,000 after acquiring an additional 132,967 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 10.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,471,223 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $596,140,000 after acquiring an additional 141,915 shares in the last quarter. United Bank boosted its holdings in Home Depot by 4.2% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 4,458 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,806,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $649,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

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.