Home Depot on Tuesday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analysts’ forecasts as customers spent more on home improvement projects.
The company’s shares fell less than 1% in premarket trading.
Here’s what the home improvement retailer reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:
- Earnings per share: $3.92 vs. $3.40 expected
- Revenue: $36.82 billion vs. $35.01 billion expected
Net income for the fiscal third quarter ended Oct. 31 rose to $4.13 billion, or $3.92 per share, from $3.43 billion, or $3.18 per share, a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting earnings per share of $3.40.
Net sales rose 9.8% to $36.82 billion, topping expectations of $35.01 billion. Same-store sales climbed 6.1% in the quarter, beating StreetAccount estimates of 2.2%. The retailer faced tough comparisons with a year ago, when its same-store sales were soaring, thanks to consumers taking on more do-it-yourself projects.
A strong housing market has helped Home Depot and rival Lowe’s. Consumers have been investing more as home prices climb, increasing nearly 20% compared with a year ago. Demand for materials has been rising from home professionals, helping to offset lower demand from do-it-yourself projects. Home Depot holds a larger share of the professional market, although Lowe’s is trying to win more of that business.
This quarter, Home Depot’s customer transactions fell by 5.5% to 428.2 million. But consumers were spending more when they did visit, raising the average ticket by 12.9% to $82.38. Sales per square foot increased by 6.2% in quarter.