Home Depot cuts 2019 forecast after sales miss, shares drop

Earnings

Shoppers arrive at a Home Depot Inc. store in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S., on Monday, Feb. 25, 2019.

Luke Sharrett | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Home Depot reported quarterly earnings that outpaced analysts’ expectations but sales fell short.

Shares of Home Depot were down more than 5% in premarket trading.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

  • Earnings per share: $2.53, adjusted, vs. $2.52 expected
  • Revenue: $27.22 billion vs. $27.53 billion expected
  • Same-store sales growth, global: 3.6% vs. 4.7% expected

Home Depot said earnings fell to $2.8 billion, or $2.53 per share, from $2.9 billion, or $2.51 per share,  a year ago.

Sales increased 3.5% to $27.22 billion, just shy of analysts estimates of $27.53 billion. 

Last quarter, the Atlanta-based company trimmed its full-year revenue outlook, partially due to potential tariff impacts. It estimated the Dec. 15 tariffs and the 25% tariffs already in place could raise its cost of sales by about $2 billion, or about 2% of annual sales.

Home Depot CEO Craig Menear also cited continued lumber deflation for the lower sales forecast.

Rival Lowe’s is slated to report its earnings before the bell on Wednesday. Lowe’s CEO Marvin Ellison, who stepped into that role in July of 2018, has focused much of his attention on the professional contractor. In the second quarter of 2018, Lowe’s said that the company added 35,000 new customers, but did not disclose the total number of customers for competitive reasons.

Shares of Home Depot hit a 52-week high on Monday of $239.31. The stock, which is valued at $262 billion, has risen 39% as of Monday’s close. Rival Lowe’s, which has a market value of nearly $89 billion, has gained 24% year to date.

This story is developing. Please check back for updates.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the forecast for global same-store sales. Analysts were predicting a gain of 4.7%.

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