Saratoga Research & Investment Management Sells 42,692 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Saratoga Research & Investment Management trimmed its holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 28.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 105,859 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 42,692 shares during the quarter. Home Depot comprises 2.1% of Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $41,178,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HD. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 176,023 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $68,471,000 after acquiring an additional 17,615 shares during the last quarter. Bcwm LLC bought a new position in Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,286,000. Joseph Group Capital Management lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 12,026 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $4,678,000 after buying an additional 1,103 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Home Depot by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,494,928 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $970,502,000 after buying an additional 36,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at $934,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Home Depot from $467.00 to $437.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Home Depot from $431.00 to $424.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. KGI Securities raised shares of Home Depot to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $435.85.

Home Depot Stock Down 1.3 %

HD stock opened at $357.86 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $355.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.31, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. The Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $323.77 and a fifty-two week high of $439.37. The business has a 50-day moving average of $389.98 and a 200-day moving average of $398.99.

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

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.66%.

Home Depot Profile

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.