The Home Depot, Inc. $HD Position Boosted by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) by 245.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 70,348 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,994 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Home Depot were worth $20,013,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Machina Capital S.A.S. bought a new stake in shares of Home Depot in the 3rd quarter valued at $5,351,000. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,673 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Davis Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Home Depot by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,488 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $423,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Brooklyn FI LLC bought a new position in Home Depot during the third quarter worth $203,000. Finally, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Home Depot by 3.0% during the third quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 7,864 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $2,237,000 after acquiring an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.86% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Home Depot

These are some of the HD headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent comparable-sales growth of 1.7%, strong professional-customer demand and digital gains point to resilience despite uneven demand. Wall Street is also expecting earnings growth, with one preview citing factors that could support an earnings beat. Can Home Depot Sustain Comparable Sales Growth Amid Uneven Demand? Home Depot Reports Next Week: Wall Street Expects Earnings Growth
• Negative Sentiment: Elevated mortgage rates, sluggish housing activity and weak customer transactions cloud the sales outlook; an earnings analysis argues transactions need to turn positive to sustain the investment case. Comparable-sales outlook Home Depot: Hold Into Q3 Earnings, Transactions Must Turn Positive
• Negative Sentiment: HD is facing technical pressure ahead of earnings, which could weigh on the shares in the near term, particularly if results or guidance disappoint. Home Depot Stock Running into Technical Pressure Before Earnings

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on HD shares. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Home Depot in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Melius Research set a $397.00 price target on shares of Home Depot in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $346.00 to $322.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Home Depot from $369.00 to $373.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.90.

Home Depot Price Performance

HD stock opened at $351.36 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.64, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 1.08. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $310.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $333.61. The company has a market capitalization of $350.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.93. The Home Depot, Inc. has a 52-week low of $277.15 and a 52-week high of $397.63.

Home Depot (NYSE:HD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 18th. The home improvement retailer reported $4.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.73 by $0.19. Home Depot had a return on equity of 106.42% and a net margin of 8.41%. The firm had revenue of $47.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.68 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Home Depot has set its FY 2026 guidance at 14.690-15.278 EPS. Research analysts expect that The Home Depot, Inc. will post 15.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Home Depot Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.33 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $9.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is 65.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Home Depot news, CAO Kimberly R. Scardino sold 675 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.95, for a total transaction of $206,516.25. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,505,424.55. This trade represents a 7.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael F. Rowe sold 710 shares of Home Depot stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $336.76, for a total transaction of $239,099.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,838 shares in the company, valued at $2,302,764.88. This represents a 9.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 9,829 shares of company stock worth $3,339,314. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Home Depot Profile

The Home Depot, Inc. is a home improvement retailer serving do-it-yourself customers, professional contractors and other businesses. The company sells building materials, tools, hardware, appliances, paint, flooring, and products for home maintenance, repair and renovation, as well as lawn and garden supplies. In addition to its retail stores and online channels, Home Depot offers services such as product delivery, equipment rental and home improvement installation. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.