The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-one research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty-two have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $435.85.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Home Depot from $435.00 to $418.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. KGI Securities upgraded Home Depot to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Home Depot from $431.00 to $424.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Home Depot from $467.00 to $437.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th.

Home Depot Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of HD stock opened at $357.86 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $355.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.31, a PEG ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $389.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $398.80. Home Depot has a twelve month low of $323.77 and a twelve month high of $439.37.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.09. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.45% and a return on equity of 452.60%. The business had revenue of $39.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.82 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Home Depot will post 15.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $2.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $9.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Home Depot

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HD. Milestone Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the fourth quarter valued at $261,000. Avant Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth approximately $238,000. Fire Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth approximately $933,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth approximately $172,000. Finally, Prostatis Group LLC lifted its position in Home Depot by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Prostatis Group LLC now owns 5,891 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,291,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Company 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.