Home Depot’s second-quarter net income rose 14 percent as shoppers picked up lawn and garden products and made storm-related repairs during the summer, the company reports. The largest U.S. home-improvement retailer also raised its earnings guidance.
The results sent Home Depot shares up 5 percent in the morning trading and are a positive sign consumers are feeling slightly better about spending money to improve their homes, says the Associated Press. Purchases more than $900, which account for about 20 percent of Home Depot’s revenue, rose 5.4 percent during the quarter. Transactions under $50 were flat.
“Our second-quarter results were driven by a rebound in our seasonal business, storm-related repairs and strength in our core categories,” says CEO Frank Blake.
He added that results were positive in the North, South and Western United States, indicating a “stabilizing environment across the country.”
The results stood in contrast to smaller rival Lowe’s, which a day earlier in part blamed bad weather for its flat second-quarter earnings and cut its revenue forecast. Its shares rose 15 cents to $19.83.
Spring and summer are the most important seasons for home-improvement retailers since people spend more on their lawn and garden projects during those months. Home-improvement retailers have slumped for more than three years after shoppers cut back on big-ticket renovation projects because of the moribund housing market and weak economy.
