Scotia Capital Inc. Boosts Stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. increased its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. by 5.5%, owning 506,798 shares valued at approximately $185.7 million following the purchase of an additional 26,547 shares during the first quarter.
• Sharing a mixed outlook, Wall Street analysts have set varying price targets for Home Depot, with JPMorgan Chase raising its target to $418 and Jefferies reducing it to $456, reflecting ongoing interest and differing expectations in the stock.
• Home Depot recently announced a quarterly dividend of $2.30 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.5% and a dividend payout ratio of 62.42%.

Scotia Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 5.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 506,798 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 26,547 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. owned 0.05% of Home Depot worth $185,732,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 220.0% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 96 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 86.8% during 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. Finally, Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 35.7% during the 1st quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 114 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Home Depot from $410.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $461.00 to $456.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $455.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a report on Monday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $398.00 price objective (up from $380.00) on shares of Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $426.77.

Home Depot Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of Home Depot stock opened at $373.55 on Friday. 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 5.95, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $371.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.34, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.00. The company's fifty day moving average is $365.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $373.17.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.59 by ($0.03). Home Depot had a return on equity of 242.51% and a net margin of 8.98%. The business had revenue of $39.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.63 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were given a dividend of $2.30 per share. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 5th. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.42%.

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 value of $954,564.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,919,130.14. The trade was a 24.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 5,406 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 17,367 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,413,285.76. The trade was a 23.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Home Depot Company 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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