Although earnings and comps declined, Home Depot still managed to beat a Wall Street estimate in the third quarter.
Net earnings were $3.65 billion, or $3.67 per diluted share, versus $3.81 billion, or $3.81 per diluted share, in the year-previous quarter. Adjusted diluted earnings per share were $3.78 billion versus $3.85 billion in the year-before period, the company reported.
An analyst consensus estimate published by Yahoo Finance called for earnings per adjusted diluted share of $3.64 and revenues of $39.32 billion.
Comparable sales slipped 1.3% overall 1.2% in the United States. Total sales were $40.22 billion, up 6.6% from the year-prior quarter. Operating income was $5.42 billion versus operating income of $5.41 billion in the year-earlier period, while adjusted operating income was $5.56 billion versus $5.45 billion.
In a conference call, Home Depot executives related highlights for the quarter, including progress in shrink mitigation and solid seasonal results, including grills as well as indoor and outdoor gardens. Consumers responded well to innovative products, but major projects usually financed remained soft, and do-it-yourself sales trailed gains in the pro-business.
“While macroeconomic uncertainty remains, our third-quarter performance exceeded our expectations,” said Ted Decker, Home Depot chair, president and CEO, in announcing the financial results. “As weather normalized, we saw better engagement across seasonal goods and certain outdoor projects, as well as incremental sales related to hurricane demand.”
