Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Sells 5,625 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. $HD

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. trimmed its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,257 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 5,625 shares during the period. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $8,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV bought a new position in shares of Home Depot during the second quarter valued at approximately $263,000. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,149,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Home Depot by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,196 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $5,938,000 after buying an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new position in Home Depot during the first quarter valued at $3,851,000. Finally, Shell Asset Management Co. raised its stake in Home Depot by 45.2% during the second quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 48,175 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $17,663,000 after buying an additional 15,002 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of HD stock opened at $345.87 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $357.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $377.64. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52 week low of $326.31 and a 52 week high of $426.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $344.32 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a P/E/G ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 18th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.83 by ($0.09). Home Depot had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 160.74%. The company had revenue of $41.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Home Depot has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.478-14.478 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 4th were issued a $2.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 4th. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Home Depot’s payout ratio is presently 62.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $424.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $444.00 to $423.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $425.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Home Depot from $400.00 to $395.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $402.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Home Depot news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 2,872 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.52, for a total transaction of $1,000,949.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,196 shares in the company, valued at $4,599,069.92. The trade was a 17.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Angie Brown sold 1,946 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $357.63, for a total transaction of $695,947.98. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,409,419.83. The trade was a 33.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 4,963 shares of company stock valued at $1,748,845 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Company Profile

The Home Depot, Inc (NYSE: HD) is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and an integrated online platform offering a broad range of products and services for do-it-yourself consumers, professional contractors and businesses. The company was founded in 1978 by Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Since opening its first stores at the end of the 1970s, Home Depot has grown into a multinational retailer known for its orange-branded stores and wide assortment of home improvement merchandise.

Home Depot’s core business includes the sale of building materials, lumber, tools, hardware, appliances, paint, plumbing and electrical supplies, lawn and garden products, and home décor.