The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Stake Lifted by Foster Group Inc.

Foster Group Inc. raised its holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 55.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,703 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 968 shares during the quarter. Foster Group Inc.'s holdings in Home Depot were worth $1,052,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of HD. Quarry LP increased its position in Home Depot by 36.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 136 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Home Depot during the second quarter worth approximately $47,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 1.1% in the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 19,965 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $6,873,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Ashburton Jersey Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 2nd quarter valued at $8,450,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,382,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Home Depot

In other Home Depot news, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.58, for a total transaction of $40,258.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,465 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,018,159.70. The trade was a 0.80 % 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 22,084 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $408.91, for a total transaction of $9,030,368.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,404 shares in the company, valued at $8,343,399.64. The trade was a 51.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 38,188 shares of company stock worth $15,624,585. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group raised Home Depot from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $360.00 to $455.00 in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Home Depot from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $451.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $426.00.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HD traded down $2.64 during trading on Friday, reaching $411.86. 2,761,013 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,175,677. The stock has a market capitalization of $409.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 1.05. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12 month low of $323.77 and a 12 month high of $439.37. The company has a 50 day moving average of $408.02 and a 200-day moving average of $392.08. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.64 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $40.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.31 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.12 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th were paid a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 27th. Home Depot's payout ratio is 61.14%.

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.