The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-four ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have assigned a hold recommendation and twenty-one have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $404.50.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KGI Securities lowered Home Depot from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $320.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Bank of America dropped their price target on Home Depot from $450.00 to $430.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $424.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Home Depot from $348.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 19th.

Home Depot Stock Up 0.7%

HD stock opened at $383.63 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $381.91 billion, a PE ratio of 26.15, a P/E/G ratio of 14.20 and a beta of 1.08. Home Depot has a 12 month low of $326.31 and a 12 month high of $426.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $356.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $378.45.

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

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 4th were paid a dividend of $2.30 per share. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 4th. Home Depot’s payout ratio is 62.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.26, for a total value of $51,947.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 12,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,413,763.20. This trade represents a 1.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 2,872 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction on Friday, December 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $348.52, for a total value of $1,000,949.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,196 shares in the company, valued at $4,599,069.92. This represents a 17.87% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 4,963 shares of company stock worth $1,748,845 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HD. Parvin Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 110.0% during the 3rd quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Financially Speaking Inc purchased a new position in Home Depot in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in Home Depot in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% 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.