KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Buys New Position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 363,842 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock, valued at approximately $141,531,000. Home Depot accounts for 0.7% of KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SYM FINANCIAL Corp increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 17.8% during the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,917 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $777,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Home Depot by 17.1% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Home Depot by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,471,223 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $596,140,000 after purchasing an additional 141,915 shares in the last quarter. United Bank raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 4.2% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 4,458 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $1,806,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 14.1% in the third quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 2,663 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,079,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company's stock.

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Home Depot Price Performance

HD stock traded down $2.87 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $360.90. 2,799,540 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,219,444. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $392.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $399.16. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $323.77 and a 52-week high of $439.37. The company has a market capitalization of $358.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.52, 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 current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.09. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The company had revenue of $39.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. Home Depot's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate 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 given a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Home Depot's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on HD. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Home Depot from $431.00 to $424.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $435.00 to $418.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Home Depot has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $435.85.

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.