American Trust Cuts Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

American Trust decreased its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,728 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 944 shares during the period. American Trust's holdings in Home Depot were worth $4,173,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ascent Group LLC boosted its position in Home Depot by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 28,831 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $11,215,000 after buying an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $180,000. Aurdan Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $676,000. Perennial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,609,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $132,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HD. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Home Depot from $461.00 to $456.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Home Depot from $445.00 to $420.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $398.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. TD Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Home Depot from $430.00 to $425.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $426.77.

Insider Buying and Selling at Home Depot

In other news, EVP Fahim Siddiqui sold 2,600 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.14, for a total transaction of $954,564.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,951 shares in the company, valued at $2,919,130.14. This trade represents a 24.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Home Depot Stock Down 0.7%

HD traded down $2.59 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $367.81. The company had a trading volume of 2,977,986 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,430,623. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52 week low of $323.77 and a 52 week high of $439.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The company has a market capitalization of $365.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.99, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $360.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $386.69.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.59 by ($0.03). Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The company had revenue of $39.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.24 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.63 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.42%.

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.