The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Shares Sold by Conning Inc.

Conning Inc. decreased its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 109,135 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 4,005 shares during the quarter. Home Depot accounts for approximately 1.3% of Conning Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $37,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Home Depot during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,740,875,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Home Depot by 105,205.6% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,994,957 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $3,472,867,000 after acquiring an additional 10,984,516 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 5,525,791 shares in the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC raised its position in Home Depot by 30,994.4% during the second quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 2,413,234 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $241,323,000 after acquiring an additional 2,405,473 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the first quarter valued at approximately $563,524,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the business’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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 107,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,712,878.53. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 8,996 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $3,317,185.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 75,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,950,123.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Edward P. Decker sold 35,987 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $39,712,878.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on HD. Piper Sandler upgraded Home Depot from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $311.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. StockNews.com cut Home Depot from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $390.00 price objective on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Home Depot from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Home Depot has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $376.35.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of Home Depot stock opened at $337.93 on Tuesday. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52 week low of $274.26 and a 52 week high of $396.87. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $369.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $338.82. The firm has a market cap of $334.90 billion, a PE ratio of 22.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.05. Home Depot had a return on equity of 1,339.65% and a net margin of 9.92%. The business had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a $2.25 dividend. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is 59.60%.

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.