The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Acquired by Peoples Financial Services CORP.

Peoples Financial Services CORP. lifted its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 5.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,450 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Peoples Financial Services CORP.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $2,004,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Slow Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot in the first quarter worth $25,000. Kalos Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in Home Depot in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Home Depot in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 68.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 12,120 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.40, for a total transaction of $3,943,848.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 73,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,770,144.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 6,091 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $324.22, for a total value of $1,974,824.02. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,375,680.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 12,120 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.40, for a total value of $3,943,848.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 73,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,770,144.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,811 shares of company stock valued at $6,441,376 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HD opened at $317.26 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $317.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.95. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $325.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $305.38. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $265.61 and a 52-week high of $347.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.53.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 15th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.20. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,424.89% and a net margin of 10.48%. The business had revenue of $42.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $42.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.05 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the home improvement retailer to purchase up to 4.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 31st were issued a $2.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 30th. This represents a $8.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Home Depot from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 15th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $370.00 to $384.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $327.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on Home Depot in a report on Wednesday, September 6th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $339.62.

Home Depot Profile

The Home Depot, Inc operates as a home improvement retailer. 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.