Welch Group LLC Acquires 4,129 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. $HD

Welch Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 176,698 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,129 shares during the period. Home Depot makes up about 2.7% of Welch Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $64,785,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Abound Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Home Depot by 86.8% during the 1st quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 99 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, GFG Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot during the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. 70.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In other news, EVP William D. Bastek sold 2,303 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.12, for a total transaction of $974,445.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,254,313.20. The trade was a 8.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 32,897 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.22, for a total transaction of $13,067,346.34. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 122,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,629,658.50. This represents a 21.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 48,835 shares of company stock worth $19,623,432 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Trading Down 0.5%

HD opened at $375.86 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $374.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.53, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.00. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $326.31 and a 1-year high of $439.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $403.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $377.30.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 19th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.69 by ($0.01). Home Depot had a net margin of 8.86% and a return on equity of 193.99%. The company had revenue of $45.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.60 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Home Depot has set its FY 2025 guidance at 14.940-14.940 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were given a dividend of $2.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Home Depot’s payout ratio is currently 62.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HD. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $497.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Home Depot from $415.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $435.42.

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.