IFM Investors Pty Ltd Raises Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. $HD

Key Points

• IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in The Home Depot by 5% in Q2, now holding 193,994 shares valued at approximately $71.1 million.
• Home Depot reported a miss on earnings per share in its latest quarterly results, with $4.68 EPS against expectations of $4.69.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $2.30 per share, yielding 2.2%, with a dividend payout ratio of 62.5%.

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 193,994 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 9,321 shares during the quarter. Home Depot comprises about 0.7% of IFM Investors Pty Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Home Depot were worth $71,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Home Depot during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 86.8% in the 1st quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 99 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 35.7% in the 1st quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 114 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Home Depot Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of HD stock traded down $1.71 on Friday, reaching $415.77. 6,709,599 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,720,799. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $394.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $373.39. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52 week low of $326.31 and a 52 week high of $439.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $413.85 billion, a PE ratio of 28.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 1.00.

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

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Home Depot's payout ratio is 62.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Richard V. Mcphail sold 3,369 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $403.66, for a total value of $1,359,930.54. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 45,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,348,365.30. This represents a 6.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP William D. Bastek sold 2,303 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.12, for a total transaction of $974,445.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,254,313.20. This trade represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 48,835 shares of company stock worth $19,623,432. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on HD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Home Depot from $460.00 to $452.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Home Depot from $435.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. TD Securities lowered Home Depot to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Thursday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $497.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $435.00.

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.