Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI Cuts Stock Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI decreased its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD - Free Report) by 37.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 247,076 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock after selling 147,045 shares during the quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI's holdings in Home Depot were worth $96,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at $5,032,910,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at $2,212,546,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 21,394.9% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,039,862 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $793,486,000 after purchasing an additional 2,030,372 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,149,890 shares of the home improvement retailer's stock valued at $4,726,186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,424,857 shares during the period. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter valued at $471,189,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company's stock.

Home Depot Stock Down 1.7%

Home Depot stock traded down $6.34 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $370.71. The stock had a trading volume of 3,965,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,436,752. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $359.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $387.66. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12-month low of $323.77 and a 12-month high of $439.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $368.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $3.59 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $39.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.24 billion. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.63 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were given a $2.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Home Depot's previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. Home Depot's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Home Depot from $445.00 to $420.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $380.00 to $398.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. TD Securities restated a "buy" rating and issued a $470.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective 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. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $455.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday. Eight 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, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $427.92.

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.