Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Home Depot Put Options (NYSE:HD)

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors purchased 40,186 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 76% compared to the typical volume of 22,813 put options.

Home Depot Trading Down 4.7 %

Shares of HD stock opened at $347.42 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $398.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $399.42. Home Depot has a 1-year low of $323.77 and a 1-year high of $439.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $345.12 billion, a PE ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $39.70 billion for 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%. Home Depot’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.82 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Home Depot will post 15.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $2.30 per share. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. Home Depot’s payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Home Depot from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. KGI Securities upgraded Home Depot to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $436.50.

Institutional Trading of Home Depot

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at $5,032,910,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at $2,212,546,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 21,394.9% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,039,862 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $793,486,000 after acquiring an additional 2,030,372 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,149,890 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,726,186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,424,857 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at $471,189,000. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.