The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Sold by Busey Bank

Busey Bank lessened its stake in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 17,405 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 405 shares during the quarter. Busey Bank’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $6,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of HD. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the third quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 36.0% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 136 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HD opened at $411.86 on Friday. The Home Depot, Inc. has a twelve month low of $323.77 and a twelve month high of $439.37. The company has a market cap of $409.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 1.05. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $408.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $392.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.64 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $40.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.31 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.81 EPS. Research analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th were given a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HD shares. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Home Depot from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Home Depot currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $426.00.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 16,004 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $6,553,958.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 77,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,727,562. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 22,084 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.91, for a total value of $9,030,368.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,404 shares in the company, valued at $8,343,399.64. The trade was a 51.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,188 shares of company stock worth $15,624,585 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% 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.