Lowe’s (LOW) and Home Depot (HD) had powerful starts to the year thanks to some big trends in the U.S. housing market. Lowe’s reported Wednesday that first-quarter earnings, excluding one-time items, came in at 87 cents a share compared to Wall Street forecasts for 85 cents. Comparable-store sales in the U.S. increased a solid 7.5%, slightly better than Home Depot’s 7.4% gain. Despite the strong start to the year, Lowe’s left its sales growth guidance for the year unchanged at 6%. The company lifted its full-year earnings guidance to $4.11 a share from $4 a share previously, likely to reflect an unrealized gain of 11 cents a share on a foreign currency hedge booked in the first quarter. Same-store sales increased in every product category, said Lowe’s on a call with analysts. “We executed well in the quarter, growing both transaction and average ticket to achieve comparable sales growth that exceeded our expectations,” said Robert Niblock, Lowe’s chairman and CEO, in a statement, adding, “We continued to focus on providing better omnichannel customer experiences, and saw strength in indoor as well as outdoor categories.”
Here Are the Biggest Economic Trends Helping Lowe’s and Home Depot Win This Spring
