Sarasin & Partners LLP Sells 265,072 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Sarasin & Partners LLP cut its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 28.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 664,257 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 265,072 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for about 2.6% of Sarasin & Partners LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned approximately 0.07% of Home Depot worth $243,444,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Navigoe LLC bought a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in Home Depot by 220.0% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 96 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Home Depot from $430.00 to $425.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. HSBC raised shares of Home Depot from a "reduce" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the company from $356.00 to $410.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $435.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Home Depot from $445.00 to $420.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $426.77.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Home Depot stock traded up $2.53 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $362.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,918,183 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,405,621. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $326.31 and a 1-year high of $439.37. 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 price of $362.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $383.33. The company has a market cap of $361.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.66, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.02.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business had revenue of $39.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.63 EPS. Home Depot's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be issued a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Home Depot

In related news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 5,406 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.28, for a total transaction of $1,996,327.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,367 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,413,285.76. The trade was a 23.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Fahim Siddiqui sold 2,600 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.14, for a total transaction of $954,564.00. Following the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

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.