Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI Has $24.24 Million Stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI trimmed its stake in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 62,309 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 1,039 shares during the period. Home Depot comprises about 1.9% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $24,238,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HD. POM Investment Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 2,117 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $824,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. boosted its stake in Home Depot by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 4,653 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,810,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Insight Inv LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 2.0% during the third quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 1,246 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC now owns 1,108 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Live Oak Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Live Oak Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,915 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,912,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of HD stock opened at $376.66 on Friday. The Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $323.77 and a fifty-two week high of $439.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $374.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.59, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $400.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $399.81.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $39.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.15 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. Home Depot’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a $2.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. Home Depot’s payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on HD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Home Depot from $455.00 to $435.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Home Depot from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $436.50.

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.