National Pension Service Has $724.63 Million Holdings in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

National Pension Service grew its stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,862,842 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after buying an additional 4,184 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for about 0.7% of National Pension Service’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. National Pension Service’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $724,627,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 10.8% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 171,005 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $69,340,000 after purchasing an additional 16,650 shares in the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp raised its stake in shares of Home Depot by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,917 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $777,000 after buying an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Home Depot during the 3rd quarter worth about $217,000. Swedbank AB increased its stake in Home Depot by 17.1% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 909,530 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $368,542,000 after acquiring an additional 132,967 shares during the period. Finally, Hamlin Capital Management LLC raised its position in Home Depot by 8.9% in the third quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 363,367 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $147,236,000 after purchasing an additional 29,558 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE HD opened at $393.52 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $401.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $398.48. 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 Home Depot, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $323.77 and a fifty-two week high of $439.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $390.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.73, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.05.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $39.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.15 billion. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.82 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.13 EPS for the current year.

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. This is an increase from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on HD shares. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Mizuho upped their price target on Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $363.00 to $413.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $455.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $433.44.

Home Depot 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.