Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Trims Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,454 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 466 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for about 1.2% of Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $1,732,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Home Depot in the third quarter worth $41,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Livelsberger Financial Advisory bought a new position in shares of Home Depot during the third quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Finley Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Home Depot in the 4th quarter worth about $59,000. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 16,004 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $409.52, for a total transaction of $6,553,958.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 77,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,727,562. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.58, for a total value of $40,258.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,465 shares in the company, valued at $5,018,159.70. This trade represents a 0.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,188 shares of company stock worth $15,624,585 in the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on HD shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $372.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $451.00 price target for the company. Mizuho upped their price objective on Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Home Depot from $430.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Home Depot from $459.00 to $465.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $426.00.

Home Depot Stock Performance

HD opened at $407.39 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $406.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $393.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $404.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.68, a PEG ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 1.05. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 1-year low of $323.77 and a 1-year high of $439.37.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.64 by $0.14. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The business had revenue of $40.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.81 EPS. Home Depot’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.12 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, December 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th were issued a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.14%.

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.