Welch Group LLC Raises Stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Welch Group LLC increased its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 172,569 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,396 shares during the quarter. Home Depot makes up approximately 2.7% of Welch Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Welch Group LLC's holdings in Home Depot were worth $61,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of HD. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in Home Depot by 220.0% during the fourth 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. 70.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on HD. TD Securities reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $470.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Home Depot from $450.00 to $435.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Home Depot from $424.00 to $399.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Home Depot from $393.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, KGI Securities upgraded shares of Home Depot to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Home Depot currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $426.77.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 5,406 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $369.28, for a total value of $1,996,327.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,367 shares in the company, valued at $6,413,285.76. This represents a 23.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Fahim Siddiqui sold 2,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.14, for a total value of $954,564.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,919,130.14. The trade was 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 Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of HD stock traded down $0.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $367.85. 4,110,311 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,424,960. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $323.93 and a 52-week high of $439.37. The stock's fifty day moving average is $360.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $386.04. 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 stock has a market cap of $365.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.99, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.59 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $39.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.24 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.63 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $2.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.42%.

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.