Consumers spent big at Home Depot
Home Depot’s spring marked a dramatic turnaround from its ugly winter.
The company posted $ 30.5 billion worth of sales last quarter, up 8.4% from a year ago. That’s stunning growth — particularly for a retailer as gigantic as Home Depot.
The strong spring led Home Depot to boost its outlook for the year.
It stood in stark contrast from the first quarter, when Home Depot (HD) chairman and CEO Craig Menear blamed snowy weather for a “a slow start to the spring selling season.”
“We were very pleased with our record second quarter sales and earnings. Not only did our seasonal business rebound from the first quarter, but our overall results exceeded our expectations,” Menear said in a statement Tuesday.
Both Home Depot and rival Lowe’s are somewhat Amazon-proof. Many professional builders and DIY consumers prefer to go to home improvement stores for building materials as opposed to buying online at Amazon (AMZN).
Lowe’s(LOW) will release its latest earnings on August 22.
Home Depot wasn’t the only retailer to report strong results Tuesday.
Tapestry,(TPR) the owner of the Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman brands, also reported earnings that exceeded analysts’ estimates. It raised its outlook as well.
The good spending news may also bode well for other retailers, some of which report their earnings later this week. Macy’s (M), Walmart (WMT), JCPenney (JCP) and Nordstrom (JWN) are all on tap.
