There are few things that catch the eye quite like the phrase “free (fill-in-the-blank).” It does not especially matter just what that thing is; if it is free, there will likely be interest. That is what home improvement giant Home Depot (HD) is out to do with a new promotion that looks to take on Amazon (AMZN) right in the heart of its Prime Days promotion. Investors were pleased by the sheer bravado of it all, and sent shares up modestly in the closing minutes of Thursday’s trading.
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Home Depot is slashing prices on power tools, noted one report, with sale prices down up to 50% over normal levels. There are indeed free tools available, part of several “buy-one-get-one” combinations with the DeWalt brand all over them. However, there is a downside; today marks the end of several of these deals. For investors, though, today will likely be a very good day as shoppers step in, looking for—and likely finding—great deals.
Home Depot will be covering the waterfront in terms of available tools: from saws to sanders, from powered ratchets to the batteries to run them, and well, well beyond, Home Depot will have it on offer and at a healthy discount.
Helping Texas Rebuild
A major natural disaster, like the central Texas flood, is a perfect opportunity for a home improvement giant like Home Depot to step in and offer aid. Not only is the product line tailor-made for addressing the biggest problem—damaged homes—but also, addressing that need publicly encourages returning shoppers.
To that end, Home Depot is offering up $250,000 to disaster relief efforts in various communities in central Texas. Not only is Home Depot reaching out to its usual partners in such efforts, like Convoy of Hope, Operation Blessing and Team Rubicon, but also, Home Depot is turning to its own supply chain for help. Home Depot addressed its “…vendors and distribution centers,” looking for “essential supplies” that would need to go to stores in the area as a means to supply the emergency response and the events that follow. In fact, one Home Depot parking lot is currently being used as an “…EMS command post.”
Is Home Depot a Good Long-Term Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on HD stock based on 19 Buys and six Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 4.88% rally in its share price over the past year, the average HD price target of $427.65 per share implies 14.41% upside potential.
