Fruth Investment Management Sells 49 Shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Fruth Investment Management lessened its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,951 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 49 shares during the quarter. Home Depot makes up approximately 1.0% of Fruth Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $3,481,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its holdings in shares of Home Depot by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 171,005 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $69,340,000 after acquiring an additional 16,650 shares during the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp boosted its position in Home Depot by 17.8% during the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 1,917 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $777,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Wealth Group Ltd. acquired a new position in Home Depot during the third quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Capital Insight Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Home Depot by 3.6% in the third quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC now owns 11,940 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $4,838,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. Finally, LifePro Asset Management lifted its stake in shares of Home Depot by 97.4% in the third quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 2,248 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $911,000 after buying an additional 1,109 shares during the last quarter. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HD has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Home Depot from $425.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. DA Davidson increased their target price on Home Depot from $430.00 to $466.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Home Depot in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $451.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $426.00.

Insider Activity at Home Depot

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

Home Depot Price Performance

NYSE:HD opened at $407.39 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The firm has a market cap of $404.68 billion, a PE ratio of 27.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 1.05. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 12 month low of $323.77 and a 12 month high of $439.37. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $406.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $393.70.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last announced its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $40.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.81 EPS. Home Depot’s revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th were paid 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 dividend yield of 2.21%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.