Home Depot Stock Suffers 2.6% Plunge Amid CEO's Unexpected Leave

Home Depot stock plummeted 2.6% in afternoon trading after the company's CEO, Ted Decker, took an unexpected temporary medical leave of absence.

The news broke just six days before Home Depot's fiscal second-quarter earnings report on August 18, fuelling investor anxiety at a sensitive time for the company.

Decker is expected to return within the next few months, but no specific date has been given. In his stead, Senior Executive Vice President Ann-Marie Campbell will oversee day-to-day operations and CFO Richard McPhail will handle financial management and Pro subsidiaries.

The stock's decline was exacerbated by RBC Capital raising its price target on Home Depot to $343 while keeping a neutral Sector Perform rating, a target below the current trading price of $343.03.