Investors Buy Large Volume of Home Depot Call Options (NYSE:HD)

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors acquired 43,549 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 77% compared to the typical daily volume of 24,583 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on HD. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Home Depot from $430.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Home Depot from $435.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Home Depot from $372.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Home Depot from $380.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Home Depot from $400.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Home Depot currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $426.00.

Home Depot Stock Performance

Shares of HD stock opened at $427.32 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $424.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.03, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.65. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $405.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $370.81. Home Depot has a 12 month low of $308.59 and a 12 month high of $439.37.

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

Home Depot Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be paid a $2.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $9.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Home Depot’s dividend payout ratio is 61.14%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Timothy A. Hourigan sold 16,004 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 77,475 shares in the company, valued at $31,727,562. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ann Marie Campbell sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,465 shares in the company, valued at $5,018,159.70. The trade was a 0.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,188 shares of company stock valued at $15,624,585 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Home Depot

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC increased its position in Home Depot by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC now owns 17,990 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $7,290,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. Destination Wealth Management raised its stake in Home Depot by 11.9% during the third quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 4,616 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $1,870,000 after buying an additional 491 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in Home Depot by 80.3% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 63,324 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $25,659,000 after buying an additional 28,208 shares during the period. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Home Depot during the third quarter valued at $840,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Home Depot by 304.8% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 50,099 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $20,300,000 after acquiring an additional 37,723 shares during the period. 70.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.