Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top 15 Stock Picks Heading into 2025

11. The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)

Fisher Asset Management’s Equity Stake: $3.82 Billion

Number of Hedge Funds Holding Stakes: 82

The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) is the largest home improvement store in the world. It has about 475,000 employees and over 2,300 stores in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. It sells building materials, home improvement products, lawn and garden items, and décor. A weak housing market has hurt sales, but things are getting better as interest rates drop and home sales pick up.

Improving macroeconomics was the catalyst behind The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)’s better-than-expected third-quarter results on November 12, 2024. The company delivered a 6.6% increase in sales to $40.2 billion as net earnings came in at $3.6 billion or $3.67 a share. The company remains in a strong position amid a pent-up demand for home renovations heading into 2025.

With The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) controlling a 28% market share in the home improvement space, it should benefit from increased house remodeling. Home improvement and remodeling should improve as mortgage rates and borrowing rates drop as the Federal Reserve cuts the benchmark rate.

Earlier this year, The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) acquired SRS Distribution, a well-known distributor of building supplies. SRS Distribution will help Home Depot capitalize on a possible surge in new home sales and expand its exposure to the professional market, where it already has a competitive edge over rivals.

Carillon Eagle Growth & Income Fund stated the following regarding The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:

“While Home Depot, Inc.’s (NYSE:HD) recent reported earnings were somewhat tepid, the market seems to be pricing in an inversion of the company’s sales, driven by lower interest rates. Home Depot reported its seventh consecutive quarter of same-store sales declines, giving back substantial gains that it enjoyed during the pandemic. High mortgage rates have also put a damper on existing home sales. People typically spend the most on home repairs and improvements in years when they buy or sell houses, often conducting both transactions in the same year.”