Northwest Investment Counselors LLC Acquires 60 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Northwest Investment Counselors LLC raised its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 0.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,355 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $2,595,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

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

Home Depot Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE HD opened at $317.26 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.53. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $265.61 and a 1-year high of $347.25. The company has a 50 day moving average of $325.92 and a 200-day moving average of $305.38. The company has a market cap of $317.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.82, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.95.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 15th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.20. Home Depot had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 1,424.89%. The company had revenue of $42.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.05 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program 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 buy up to 4.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 31st were given a dividend of $2.09 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 30th. This represents a $8.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.64%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Home Depot

In other Home Depot news, CAO Kimberly R. Scardino sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.69, for a total transaction of $522,704.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,281 shares in the company, valued at $2,705,319.89. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Home Depot news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 6,091 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $324.22, for a total transaction of $1,974,824.02. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,375,680.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Kimberly R. Scardino sold 1,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.69, for a total transaction of $522,704.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,705,319.89. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,811 shares of company stock worth $6,441,376 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Home Depot from $345.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Home Depot from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Home Depot from $330.00 to $360.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 15th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Home Depot from $320.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Home Depot from $370.00 to $384.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 16th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Home Depot has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.