Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Purchases 73,688 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 904,358 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 73,688 shares during the quarter. Home Depot accounts for approximately 1.2% of Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich owned about 0.09% of Home Depot worth $377,658,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Home Depot during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of HD opened at $376.66 on Friday. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $400.21 and a 200 day moving average of $399.59. The company has a market cap of $374.16 billion, a PE ratio of 25.59, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $323.77 and a 52-week high of $439.37.

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

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $2.30 per share. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased 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. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Home Depot from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $356.00 to $410.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $436.50.

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.