Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC Lowers Stake in The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 16,766 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 2,137 shares during the period. Home Depot accounts for 1.1% of Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $6,522,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HD. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the third quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Home Depot during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Home Depot Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of Home Depot stock opened at $352.12 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $349.78 billion, a PE ratio of 23.92, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 1.09. The Home Depot, Inc. has a twelve month low of $323.77 and a twelve month high of $439.37. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $393.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $398.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65.

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

Home Depot Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $2.30 dividend. This represents a $9.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. This is a positive change from Home Depot’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on HD shares. Truist Financial cut their target price on Home Depot from $467.00 to $437.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Home Depot from $440.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $455.00 target price on shares of Home Depot in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Home Depot from $440.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $436.50.

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.