Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 19,657 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock, valued at approximately $7,646,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc increased its position in Home Depot by 65.2% during the 4th quarter. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc now owns 9,100 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $3,535,000 after purchasing an additional 3,590 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 19.5% in the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 23,758 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $9,242,000 after acquiring an additional 3,873 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 51.4% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $4,357,000 after acquiring an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 132,967 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital boosted its position in Home Depot by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 13,569 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $5,291,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company's stock.

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Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HD traded down $2.87 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $360.90. 2,799,540 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,217,302. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $393.46 and a 200-day moving average of $399.16. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12 month low of $323.77 and a 12 month high of $439.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $358.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $39.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $2.30 per share. This is an increase from Home Depot's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Home Depot's payout ratio is 61.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on HD shares. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Home Depot from $435.00 to $418.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. HSBC upgraded Home Depot from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $356.00 to $410.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, KGI Securities upgraded shares of Home Depot to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.