The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-four brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $404.50.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on HD shares. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $422.00 to $407.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $413.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Home Depot from $370.00 to $350.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered Home Depot from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their target price on Home Depot from $414.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of HD opened at $383.63 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $381.91 billion, a PE ratio of 26.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 14.20 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $356.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $378.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Home Depot has a 12-month low of $326.31 and a 12-month high of $426.75.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 18th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.83 by ($0.09). Home Depot had a return on equity of 160.74% and a net margin of 8.77%.The business had revenue of $41.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.06 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Home Depot has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.478-14.478 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Home Depot will post 15.13 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 4th were issued a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 4th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.71%.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In other Home Depot news, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.26, for a total transaction of $51,947.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,413,763.20. The trade was a 1.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 2,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $348.52, for a total transaction of $1,000,949.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,196 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,599,069.92. This trade represents a 17.87% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 4,963 shares of company stock worth $1,748,845 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Home Depot

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 26,918 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $10,471,000 after buying an additional 7,203 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 7.1% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,598 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $952,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. CX Institutional raised its position in Home Depot by 8.8% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 23,869 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $8,751,000 after acquiring an additional 1,923 shares in the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,324 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $854,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnus Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 6,788 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,489,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Home Depot Company Profile

The Home Depot, Inc (NYSE: HD) is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and an integrated online platform offering a broad range of products and services for do-it-yourself consumers, professional contractors and businesses. The company was founded in 1978 by Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Since opening its first stores at the end of the 1970s, Home Depot has grown into a multinational retailer known for its orange-branded stores and wide assortment of home improvement merchandise.

Home Depot’s core business includes the sale of building materials, lumber, tools, hardware, appliances, paint, plumbing and electrical supplies, lawn and garden products, and home décor.