Schnieders Capital Management LLC Reduces Stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Schnieders Capital Management LLC lessened its position in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,182 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 1,705 shares during the quarter. Home Depot makes up about 0.9% of Schnieders Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Schnieders Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $4,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 1.3% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,347,396 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,730,889,000 after acquiring an additional 153,141 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 12,647.4% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,569,482 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,930,104,000 after purchasing an additional 5,525,791 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 38.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,347,596 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,506,659,000 after purchasing an additional 1,207,388 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in Home Depot by 11.3% during the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 3,418,400 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $1,032,904,000 after purchasing an additional 346,641 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in Home Depot by 0.7% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,483,454 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $750,448,000 after purchasing an additional 17,224 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HD traded down $5.99 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $333.01. 3,846,833 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,344,542. The Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $274.26 and a fifty-two week high of $396.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94. The firm has a market cap of $330.02 billion, a PE ratio of 22.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $366.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $340.51.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.05. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,452.22% and a net margin of 9.92%. The firm had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were issued a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. This is a boost from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.60%.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total value of $3,317,185.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Home Depot news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.74, for a total transaction of $3,317,185.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $368.63, for a total value of $13,265,887.81. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at $39,712,878.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on HD. Mizuho began coverage on Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $415.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Home Depot from $355.00 to $366.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Home Depot from $347.00 to $393.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Home Depot from $385.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $375.96.

About Home Depot

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.