The home improvement giant beat muted expectations despite a weak housing market and nervous American consumers, and offered a measured but positive outlook for the year ahead
Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD, XETRA:HDI) shares climbed 2.3% in pre-market trading Tuesday after the retailer posted fourth-quarter results that edged past analyst forecasts, offering some reassurance that the business remains stable even as its core customers pull back on spending.
The Atlanta company reported adjusted earnings of $2.72 per share for the three months to February 1, ahead of the $2.53 Wall Street had pencilled in.
Reported net income came to $2.57 billion, or $2.58 per share, down from $3 billion a year earlier, though that comparison was skewed by an extra trading week in the prior period worth roughly $0.30 per share.
Revenue of $38.2 billion, against $38.09 billion expected, also came in fractionally ahead, with the year-on-year decline again largely explained by the calendar quirk.
Same-store sales, the measure retailers use to strip out the effect of new openings, rose 0.4% overall and 0.3% in the United States, a modest improvement but not a sign of any meaningful recovery in demand. Customer transaction volumes fell 1.6%, though the average receipt edged up to $91.28 from $89.11.
Chief executive Ted Decker pointed to sluggish storm activity in the third quarter and persistent housing market weakness as the primary drags.
Existing US home sales fell 8.4% in January to their slowest annualized pace in more than two years, while consumer confidence hit its lowest reading since 2014 in the same month.
For fiscal 2026, Home Depot forecast total sales growth of 2.5% to 4.5% and adjusted earnings per share roughly flat to up 4% against last year's $14.69.