Willis Investment Counsel Purchases 176 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Willis Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 0.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 96,719 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for approximately 2.5% of Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest position. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $39,191,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. A.P. Gilfoyle & Co. L.P. bought a new stake in Home Depot in the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new position in Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Denver PWM LLC bought a new position in Home Depot during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HD shares. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price 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. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $387.00 to $455.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $360.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Daiwa America upgraded Home Depot to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Home Depot from $396.00 to $395.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $402.38.

Home Depot Price Performance

Home Depot stock opened at $411.90 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $408.45 billion, a PE ratio of 27.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $378.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $356.92. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12 month low of $274.26 and a 12 month high of $420.03.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 13th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.59 by $0.08. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 681.27%. The business had revenue of $43.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.01 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 29th were paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is 60.36%.

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.