In the past, parking lots of home improvement stores like Home Depot (HD) were common gathering places for day laborers looking for temporary work. Contractors relied on these workers for affordable, on-the-spot help without formal hiring processes. However, after President Trump’s re-election, stricter immigration enforcement has shaken this system, according to CNBC. Indeed, recent ICE raids in Los Angeles Home Depot lots have led to fear and protests, which are now creating uncertainty in sectors that depend heavily on immigrant labor.
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According to George Carrillo of the Hispanic Construction Council, these actions could impact critical U.S. work across the economy. Many of the laborers impacted by the raids are from Latin American countries and have been vital to smaller construction jobs. He warns that this crackdown will worsen existing labor shortages, especially with U.S. construction already short over 500,000 workers. Construction delays have increased, and if smaller subcontractors can’t finish jobs, the impact will spread across the industry.
Unsurprisingly, Home Depot clarified that while it has a no-solicitation policy, it is not involved in ICE operations and wasn’t notified of the raids. Still, experts say that the broader immigration issue remains unresolved. Rick Hermanns, CEO of HireQuest, warns that inconsistent enforcement creates economic uncertainty by encouraging under-the-table labor while punishing compliant businesses. Meanwhile, immigration attorney Loren Locke criticized the raids as targeting easy, non-threatening individuals rather than solving deeper problems.
Is HD Stock a Good Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on HD stock based on 19 Buys, five Holds, and zero Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average HD price target of $428.30 per share implies 16.3% upside potential.
