Bernard Wealth Management Corp. Takes Position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,761 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,729,000. Home Depot makes up about 1.2% of Bernard Wealth Management Corp.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in HD. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth about $5,032,910,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,212,546,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Home Depot by 21,394.9% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,039,862 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $793,486,000 after purchasing an additional 2,030,372 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 95,763,752 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $37,251,142,000 after purchasing an additional 875,836 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 7,554,880 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,925,498,000 after buying an additional 599,490 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Price Performance

HD stock opened at $340.95 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $338.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.16, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12-month low of $323.77 and a 12-month high of $439.37. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $383.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $398.00.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $39.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.15 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Home Depot from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Home Depot currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $435.85.

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.