You’ve seen the orange aprons. You’ve probably spent a Saturday morning wandering through the cavernous aisles looking for a specific type of galvanized screw. But if you’d taken the money you spent on that kitchen remodel and put it into the company’s stock back in the early eighties, you wouldn't just have a nice kitchen. You’d probably own a few villas to put kitchens in.
The Home Depot share price history is one of those rare "white whale" stories in the stock market. It’s a retail giant that somehow managed to act like a high-flying tech stock for decades.
Honestly, looking back at the numbers feels a bit like looking at a typo. Since its IPO in 1981, the total return—including dividends—is over 2,000,000%. No, that's not a misplaced decimal. A $10,000 investment at the start would be worth roughly $227 million today in early 2026.
But it wasn't a straight line up. Not even close.
The $12 Gamble: 1981 to the Early Days
When Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank got fired from Handy Dan Home Improvement Centers in 1978, they weren't exactly looking to change the world. They just wanted to build a store that didn't treat customers like an inconvenience. They opened the first two stores in Atlanta in 1979, and by September 22, 1981, they took the company public.
The IPO price was $12.00 per share.
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Back then, the company traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker "HOMD." If you were a trader in 1981, you were dealing with a world of high interest rates and a stagnant economy. Betting on a "warehouse" hardware store was risky. Most people thought the stores were too big and the inventory was too vast to ever be profitable.
They were wrong.
By the end of 1982, the stock had already gone through three splits.
- January 1982: 3-for-2 split
- April 1982: 5-for-4 split
- November 1982: 2-for-1 split
Basically, if you owned one share at the IPO, you had nearly four shares by the time 1983 rolled around. That aggressive splitting was a signal: the company was growing faster than anyone could keep track of.
The Dot-Com Drag and the 2008 Housing Nightmare
If the eighties and nineties were the "golden era," the 2000s were a reality check.
Home Depot moved to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and became a staple of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. But the stock price didn't always reflect its dominance. In the year 2000, while the rest of the market was losing its mind over internet startups, Home Depot shares actually dropped about 33%.
Then came the 2008 financial crisis.
This was the ultimate test. Home Depot sells stuff for houses. In 2008, the housing market didn't just "slow down"—it essentially vaporized. Between 2007 and early 2009, the stock took a massive hit, reaching a "worst-case" drawdown of about 70% from its previous highs.
On March 6, 2009, you could have picked up shares for around $18 to $20.
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Most people were too scared to touch it. They thought the "American Dream" of homeownership was dead. But the company tightened its belt, invested in its "Pro" business (contractors and builders), and waited.
The Pandemic Surge and the 2026 Landscape
Fast forward to 2020. The world shuts down.
Instead of hurting Home Depot, the pandemic turned everyone into an amateur carpenter. If you were stuck at home, you were finally going to fix that deck. The stock price reflected this "nesting" trend instantly. In March 2020, shares dipped to around $162 during the initial panic, but they skyrocketed to over $400 by late 2021.
Since then, it's been a bit of a tug-of-war.
High interest rates in 2023 and 2024 made mortgages expensive, which usually slows down home improvement. Yet, as we sit here in January 2026, the stock has shown incredible resilience.
| Date | Approximate Share Price |
|---|---|
| January 2022 | $331 |
| October 2023 | $269 |
| January 2025 | $401 |
| January 2026 | $375 - $380 |
Currently, the market cap is hovering around $378 billion. The stock is trading near $376.00, which is only about 10% off its all-time highs. It's not the "cheap" stock it was in 2009, but it's a cash-flow machine.
The Dividend Engine Most People Overlook
You can't talk about Home Depot share price history without talking about the "secret sauce": the dividend.
Home Depot has paid a cash dividend for 154 consecutive quarters. That’s nearly 40 years of sending checks to shareholders.
In 2025, the company declared a quarterly dividend of $2.30 per share. That’s $9.20 a year just for holding the stock. When you look at the "price" on a chart, you’re only seeing half the story. The "total return" (price gain + reinvested dividends) is what turned middle-class investors into millionaires.
Why the price keeps moving
- The "Pro" Factor: About half of their revenue now comes from professional contractors, not just DIYers. Pros spend more and shop more often.
- Supply Chain: They’ve spent billions on "Market Delivery Centers" to get lumber and appliances to jobsites faster than anyone else.
- The Aging Home: The average house in the U.S. is over 40 years old. Old houses need parts. Always.
What Really Happened With the Splits?
A lot of newer investors ask: "When is the next split?"
The truth is, Home Depot hasn't split its stock since December 30, 1999. Back then, it was a 3-for-2 split. Since the turn of the millennium, management has preferred to let the share price grow or use excess cash to buy back shares rather than split them.
It makes the stock look "expensive" (nearly $400), but it doesn't actually change the value of what you own. It just means you're buying a bigger "slice" of the pie with each share.
Actionable Insights: What to do with this History
History is a teacher, not a crystal ball. But it tells us a few things about how to handle this specific stock.
- Watch the Housing Turnover: Home Depot usually follows existing home sales. When people move, they spend money on new paint and flooring. If you see mortgage rates dropping in 2026, it’s usually a green light for HD.
- Don't Ignore the "Yield on Cost": If you bought shares ten years ago, your "dividend yield" isn't the 2.4% you see on Google. Based on the price you paid then, you might be getting a 10% or 15% return every year just in dividends.
- The 20% Rule: Historically, Home Depot has seen major pullbacks of 20% or more during economic scares (like in 2022). For long-term believers, those "scary" moments have historically been the best entry points.
- Check the Moat: Morningstar currently gives them a "Wide Moat" rating. This basically means it’s incredibly hard for a newcomer to build 2,300 massive warehouses and a global supply chain to compete with them.
Basically, the Home Depot share price history shows that while "boring" retail might not seem as exciting as AI or electric cars, selling hammers and 2x4s has been one of the most consistent ways to build wealth in the history of the American stock market.
If you're looking at the current price of $375.95, don't just ask if it's "high." Ask if people are going to stop fixing their homes in the next ten years. Usually, the answer is no.