Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Sells 38,126 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. reduced its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 2.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,291,401 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 38,126 shares during the period. Home Depot comprises approximately 2.7% of Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned 0.13% of Home Depot worth $447,535,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Naples Global Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 0.5% during the third quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 33,690 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $10,180,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Clarus Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 9.5% in the third quarter. Clarus Group Inc. now owns 1,814 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $548,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. McBroom & Associates LLC grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 4.2% during the third quarter. McBroom & Associates LLC now owns 15,635 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,724,000 after buying an additional 636 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Trust boosted its position in Home Depot by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Legacy Trust now owns 8,483 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,563,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traynor Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Home Depot by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 40,423 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $12,214,000 after acquiring an additional 682 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Home Depot from $347.00 to $393.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. HSBC reaffirmed a “reduce” rating and set a $323.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $380.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Home Depot from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $375.96.

Insider Buying and Selling at Home Depot

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

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of HD stock opened at $335.01 on Friday. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12 month low of $274.26 and a 12 month high of $396.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 40.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $332.00 billion, a PE ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $364.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $340.68.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The home improvement retailer reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.05. Home Depot had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 1,452.22%. The company had revenue of $34.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share. Home Depot’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a $2.25 dividend. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.09. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.60%.

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.