Home Depot (NYSE:HD) Shares Down 2.6% - Time to Sell?

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 2.6% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $380.00 and last traded at $379.72. Approximately 1,299,424 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 3,236,218 shares. The stock had previously closed at $389.69.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Home Depot from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Home Depot from $431.00 to $424.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $440.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Nine 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $436.50.

Home Depot Stock Down 0.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $401.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $399.71. The company has a market capitalization of $379.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.91, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last released 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 business had revenue of $39.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.15 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $2.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Home Depot's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Home Depot

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SYM FINANCIAL Corp lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,917 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 3rd quarter valued at $217,000. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 17.1% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 909,530 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $368,542,000 after purchasing an additional 132,967 shares in the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. boosted its position in shares of Home Depot by 0.3% in the third quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 9,311 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $3,869,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 8.4% during the third quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 56,875 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $23,046,000 after buying an additional 4,400 shares in the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Home Depot

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.