WealthPlan Investment Management LLC Grows Stock Position in The Home Depot, Inc. $HD

Key Points

• WealthPlan Investment Management LLC boosted its Home Depot stake by 308.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 13,463 shares worth about $4.63 million.
• Home Depot’s stock has been under pressure, trading near its 52-week low of $296.88 at $297.34, while analysts remain mixed with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target of $405.66.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations and raised its quarterly dividend to $2.33 per share, but investors are also watching a class-action lawsuit and softer housing conditions ahead of its May 19 earnings report.

WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 308.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,463 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after buying an additional 10,169 shares during the quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC's holdings in Home Depot were worth $4,632,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HD. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Home Depot by 60.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,143,089 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $4,109,878,000 after purchasing an additional 3,836,051 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Home Depot by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 99,635,779 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $34,284,672,000 after purchasing an additional 1,325,748 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Home Depot by 37.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,806,308 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $1,542,278,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040,577 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Home Depot by 215.4% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,248,615 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $429,648,000 after purchasing an additional 852,719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in Home Depot in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $284,893,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Home Depot

Here are the key news stories impacting Home Depot this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Telsey Advisory reiterated a Buy rating on Home Depot, suggesting at least one Wall Street firm still sees value in the shares despite recent volatility.
• Positive Sentiment: Some commentary has highlighted Home Depot as a potential beneficiary if housing turnover and mortgage-rate conditions improve, which could support future sales and earnings.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are watching Home Depot closely ahead of earnings on May 19, with articles focusing on whether pro demand, digital tools, and repair projects can offset a weaker housing backdrop.
• Neutral Sentiment: Jim Cramer said Home Depot can perform well in a lower-rate environment, but also noted the stock needs stronger housing turnover to really accelerate.
• Negative Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein cut its price target on Home Depot to $365 from $390 and kept a Market Perform rating, reflecting a more cautious view on near-term upside.
• Negative Sentiment: A new class-action lawsuit reportedly pressured the stock, adding legal uncertainty at an already sensitive time for investors.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent pre-earnings pullback and broader worries about housing turnover have also weighed on sentiment, helping explain why Home Depot stock has been moving lower.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on HD shares. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $422.00 to $421.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $391.00 to $348.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $363.00 to $377.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $390.00 to $365.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their target price on shares of Home Depot from $413.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $405.66.

Home Depot Stock Performance

NYSE:HD opened at $297.34 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $331.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $354.39. The company has a market cap of $296.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.62. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52 week low of $296.88 and a 52 week high of $426.75.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.52 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $38.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.01 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 8.60% and a return on equity of 134.32%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.13 earnings per share. Home Depot has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.230-14.799 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th were paid a $2.33 dividend. This represents a $9.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a positive change from Home Depot's previous quarterly dividend of $2.30. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 12th. Home Depot's payout ratio is presently 65.50%.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In other Home Depot news, CFO Richard V. Mcphail sold 2,550 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $368.89, for a total value of $940,669.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 44,566 shares in the company, valued at $16,439,951.74. The trade was a 5.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Home Depot

The Home Depot, Inc NYSE: HD is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and an integrated online platform offering a broad range of products and services for do-it-yourself consumers, professional contractors and businesses. The company was founded in 1978 by Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Since opening its first stores at the end of the 1970s, Home Depot has grown into a multinational retailer known for its orange-branded stores and wide assortment of home improvement merchandise.

Home Depot's core business includes the sale of building materials, lumber, tools, hardware, appliances, paint, plumbing and electrical supplies, lawn and garden products, and home décor.

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