Avalon Global Asset Management LLC Buys 15,000 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Avalon Global Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 46.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 47,600 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for approximately 2.9% of Avalon Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Avalon Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $19,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Home Depot by 51,250.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,779,833 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $35,575,880,000 after purchasing an additional 8,762,735 shares during the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 33,540.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,478,855 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $509,081,000 after buying an additional 1,474,459 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in Home Depot in the third quarter worth about $336,231,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,679,237 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $3,516,827,000 after buying an additional 795,438 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sarasin & Partners LLP grew its stake in shares of Home Depot by 95.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 1,139,934 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $392,411,000 after buying an additional 556,053 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Home Depot Price Performance

Shares of Home Depot stock opened at $429.13 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $426.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $407.48 and its 200 day moving average is $372.20. The Home Depot, Inc. has a one year low of $308.59 and a one year high of $439.37.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.64 by $0.14. Home Depot had a return on equity of 452.60% and a net margin of 9.45%. The firm had revenue of $40.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.81 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be issued a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Teresa Wynn Roseborough sold 22,084 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $408.91, for a total transaction of $9,030,368.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,343,399.64. This trade represents a 51.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 100 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,018,159.70. This represents a 0.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,188 shares of company stock worth $15,624,585 over the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HD. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $390.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Home Depot from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $420.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Home Depot from $420.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $363.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $426.00.

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.