The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Sold by Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. cut its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,284 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 2,093 shares during the quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $13,336,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Home Depot by 2.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 21,700,427 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $8,767,449,000 after acquiring an additional 433,126 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,426,649 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,819,679,000 after purchasing an additional 205,954 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 51,250.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,779,833 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $35,575,880,000 after purchasing an additional 8,762,735 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Home Depot by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,679,237 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,516,827,000 after buying an additional 795,438 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Home Depot by 5.4% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,030,483 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,253,952,000 after buying an additional 409,890 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 Home Depot stock opened at $407.39 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $404.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.68, a P/E/G ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52 week low of $323.77 and a 52 week high of $439.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $406.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $394.24.

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

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

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 $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HD. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Barclays boosted their target price on Home Depot from $372.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Home Depot from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Home Depot from $363.00 to $413.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $426.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 16,004 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total value of $6,553,958.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 77,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,727,562. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.58, for a total value of $40,258.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,018,159.70. The trade was a 0.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,188 shares of company stock worth $15,624,585 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Home Depot Company 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.