Essex Savings Bank Sells 1,267 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. $HD

Key Points

• Essex Savings Bank reduced its stake in The Home Depot by 7.5%, holding 15,580 shares valued at $5.71 million.
• Insider selling saw executives William D. Bastek and Angie Brown decrease their holdings by 13.5% and 20.67%, respectively, with significant transactions totaling over $1.95 million.
• Home Depot recently declared a quarterly dividend of $2.30 per share, yielding 2.2% annually, with a payout ratio of 62.5%.

Essex Savings Bank decreased its holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,580 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 1,267 shares during the period. Home Depot comprises approximately 1.4% of Essex Savings Bank's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Essex Savings Bank's holdings in Home Depot were worth $5,712,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in HD. Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth about $3,851,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Home Depot in the first quarter worth $406,000. Wealth Management Partners LLC boosted its position in Home Depot by 0.6% during the first quarter. Wealth Management Partners LLC now owns 6,506 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $2,384,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Arbor Capital Management Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 4.8% during the first quarter. Arbor Capital Management Inc. ADV now owns 4,784 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,757,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 4.1% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 423,287 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $155,131,000 after buying an additional 16,654 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company's stock.

Home Depot Stock Down 0.4%

Home Depot stock traded down $1.71 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $415.77. The stock had a trading volume of 6,709,599 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,720,799. The Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $326.31 and a fifty-two week high of $439.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.31, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 1.15. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $394.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $373.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $413.85 billion, a PE ratio of 28.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.00.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 19th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.69 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $45.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $45.43 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 8.86% and a return on equity of 193.99%. Home Depot's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.60 earnings per share. Home Depot has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.940-14.940 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $2.30 per share. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 4th. Home Depot's payout ratio is 62.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on HD shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $455.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $415.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $435.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $460.00 to $452.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $435.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Angie Brown sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $404.07, for a total transaction of $404,070.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 3,837 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,550,416.59. This represents a 20.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 32,897 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.22, for a total transaction of $13,067,346.34. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,629,658.50. The trade was a 21.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,835 shares of company stock valued at $19,623,432 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

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.