Beirne Wealth Consulting Services LLC Makes New Investment in The Home Depot, Inc. $HD

Beirne Wealth Consulting Services LLC acquired a new stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,574 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $639,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Home Depot in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Financially Speaking Inc acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the second quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Dougherty Wealth Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Home Depot stock opened at $391.03 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $366.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $380.21. The stock has a market cap of $389.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.65, a P/E/G ratio of 13.97 and a beta of 1.08. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $326.31 and a 1-year high of $426.75.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 18th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.83 by ($0.09). Home Depot had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 160.74%. The firm had revenue of $41.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.78 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 4th were given a dividend of $2.30 per share. 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 presently 62.71%.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In related news, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 145 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.26, for a total transaction of $51,947.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 12,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,413,763.20. This represents a 1.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 2,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 26th. The shares were 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 directly owned 13,196 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,599,069.92. The trade was a 17.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,963 shares of company stock worth $1,748,845. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Home Depot from $450.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Wolfe Research lowered their price target on shares of Home Depot from $415.00 to $414.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore cut their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $425.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $444.00 to $423.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Home Depot from $376.00 to $366.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $407.23.

About Home Depot

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.