Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Trading Up 0.9% – Still a Buy?

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)’s stock price traded up 0.9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $355.55 and last traded at $354.39. 937,661 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 3,440,286 shares. The stock had previously closed at $351.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Home Depot from $431.00 to $424.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. HSBC raised shares of Home Depot from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the company from $356.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $436.50.

Home Depot Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $396.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $399.40. The company has a market capitalization of $347.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, 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 quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts’ expectations 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 was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. 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. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HD. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 220.0% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 96 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

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.