It will likely prove little surprise to discover that home improvement giant Home Depot (HD) is making some people very unhappy, seeing as its parking lots are now a battleground over illegal immigration. And now, some are responding to these conditions with a planned economic boycott. Investors, however, took that news in stride. In fact, investors sent shares of Home Depot stock up over 2% in Tuesday afternoon’s trading.
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Several community groups got together to set up a boycott on Home Depot in support of illegal immigrants who find themselves arrested at said locations. Interestingly, the community groups targeted several other businesses for similar reasons, including Penske Truck Services. You may remember Penske Truck Services as being the truck supplier that was used in the “Trojan Horse” attack that saw several illegal immigrants arrested at a Home Depot parking lot.
Executive director of CHIRLA—the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights—Angelica Salas noted “What we want them to do is ICE out of their property. And to stand up with our community, to stand up with the very same people who are their customers.” The boycott is turning against several businesses, and is instead encouraging people to “…support local businesses and street vendors.” Given that the boycott will last all of one day, the impact to these businesses will likely be minimal.
“The Next Generation of Home Buyers”
Meanwhile, a recent profile of Molly Battin, Home Depot’s Chief Marketing Officer, reveals that she has been hard at work trying to frame Home Depot as the brand of choice for “…the next generation of home buyers.” Battin noted that Home Depot has already done well among boomers, and now wants to focus on the opportunity they have with millennials and Gen Z. Where Gen X is in this approach is, as ever, unclear.
To that end, Battin has ramped up marketing capabilities. Home Depot now has its own content production operation in Studio Orange. It is also set to be the official home improvement retailer for the FIFA World Cup event next year. And it even has a new brand campaign known as “What Are You Working On,” which is designed to make those new home buyers more confident in their ability to improve and maintain the homes they just purchased.
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 10.7% rally in its share price over the past year, the average HD price target of $429.89 per share implies 8.83% upside potential.
