Axa S.A. Raises Stock Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Axa S.A. raised its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 40.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 575,757 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 166,472 shares during the quarter. Home Depot comprises approximately 0.7% of Axa S.A.'s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Axa S.A. owned 0.06% of Home Depot worth $223,964,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of HD. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc raised its position in shares of Home Depot by 65.2% in 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 during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 3,873 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 51.4% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $4,357,000 after buying an additional 3,800 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 13,569 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $5,291,000 after buying an additional 1,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Investors L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $409,000. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company's stock.

Home Depot Stock Performance

HD opened at $364.41 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $360.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $390.53. 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 firm has a market cap of $362.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $323.77 and a 1-year high of $439.37.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $39.70 billion during 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%. Home Depot's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.82 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $2.30 per share. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date was 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

HD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Home Depot from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $440.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. HSBC upgraded shares of Home Depot from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $356.00 to $410.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $455.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $434.08.

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.

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