Home Depot’s fourth-quarter performance was muted by ongoing caution from American consumers in a weak housing market, but the home improvement retailer topped Wall Street expectations.
The Atlanta company earned $2.57 billion, or $2.58 per share, for the three months ended Feb. 1. Stripping out one-time charges or benefits, earnings were $2.72 per share, topping analyst projections for per-share earnings of $2.53, according to FactSet.
A year earlier it earned $3 billion, or $3.02 per share.
An extra week in fiscal 2024 added approximately 30 cents per share to the year-ago quarter.
Home Depot's stock rose more than 3% before the market opened on Tuesday.
Revenue totaled $38.2 billion, down from $39.7 billion a year earlier. The extra week in the prior-year period added about $2.5 billion of sales.
Wall Street was looking for revenue of $38.09 billion.
Sales at stores open at least a year, a key indicator of a retailer’s health, edged up 0.4%. In the U.S., comparable store sales climbed 0.3%.
Chair and CEO Ted Decker said in a statement that Home Depot’s quarterly results “were largely in-line with our expectations, reflecting the lack of storm activity in the third quarter and ongoing consumer uncertainty and pressure in housing. Adjusting for storms, underlying demand was relatively stable throughout the year.”
Customer transactions dropped 1.6% in the quarter. The amount shoppers spent rose to $91.28 per average receipt from $89.11 a year earlier.
Home Depot and other retailers have seen customers cut back on their spending amid concerns about inflation and economic uncertainty. A frozen housing market has added to more tepid spending, particularly for Home Depot.
The U.S. housing market has been in a slump dating back to 2022, the year mortgage rates began climbing from historic lows that fueled a homebuying frenzy at the start of this decade. And consumer confidence declined sharply in January, hitting the lowest level since 2014 as Americans grow increasingly concerned about their financial prospects.
Neil Saunders, the managing director of GlobalData, said there has been a shift in the behavior of homeowners because of the housing market and the economy, with more people taking on smaller projects now.
“The broader truth here is that Home Depot does best for big scale improvement tasks and major DIY jobs and is a major destination for consumers undertaking such work,” Saunders wrote Tuesday. “Unfortunately, the market did not play ball over the final quarter with the number of projects undertaken down by 1.5%, mostly driven by a sharp decline in bigger ticket projects, such as full remodels.”
That sent more homeowners to local hardware stores, which can easily fulfill orders for smaller projects.
For fiscal 2026, Home Depot anticipates adjusted earnings to be approximately flat to up 4% from fiscal 2025’s $14.69 per share. The company foresees total sales growth of about 2.5% to 4.5% and comparable sales growth to be approximately flat to up 2%.
FILE - The Home Depot logo is displayed on a sign outside a store, on Aug. 14, 2025, in Manchester, N.H. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique may be unsure how to approach the second leg of the Champions League playoff against Monaco on Wednesday.
Although PSG is 3-2 ahead, protecting leads is not his style. But attacking too much against a technically strong Monaco side could expose his team to costly counterattacks.
Coach Sébastien Pocognoli's Monaco has 13 goals in the past six games. Although two of those have been defeats, the attack is looking much sharper.
Monaco went 2-0 up inside 20 minutes against PSG last week, only for clumsy defending to allow PSG back into the game. Against Lens on Saturday, Monaco overturned a 2-0 deficit with a three-goal burst in 10 second-half minutes.
PSG's defense looks weaker than last season — conceding against Monaco after just 55 seconds — and is not helped by uncertainty over the goalkeeper.
“The team can improve defensively at the moment,” Luis Enrique said at a pre-game news conference. “When you are 2-0 down within 20 minutes it normally ends in disaster. But we have shown this season and last that we can overcome any difficulty."
Since Gianluigi Donnarumma’s departure, Luis Enrique has alternated between Matvei Safonov and summer signing Lucas Chevalier.
Pairing Ansu Fati and Folarin Balogun in attack could be Pocognoli’s best option.
Fati has nine goals in 20 games, including a fine lob in against Lens on Saturday.
The former Barcelona teenage prodigy has been hampered by minor injuries this season. He went on as a substitute against Lens but Pocognoli is likely to start him against PSG.
Balogun has also dealt with injuries but finally seems fully fit. The American forward's two goals against PSG last week and his opportunist strike against Lens showed he is back in form.
Their movement up front, allied to the runs of attacking midfielder Maghnes Akliouche, may stretch PSG's defense and leave space for midfielders behind.
Fati and Akliouche can dribble at speed, while Balogun’s versatility allows him to play wide or through the middle.
Rapid counterattacks are Monaco's strength.
When Monaco beat PSG 1-0 in Ligue 1 in November the goal came from a quick break. On Saturday, the third goal against Lens was a slick counterattack ending with Fati's lob.
PSG showed vulnerability to quick balls played behind the full backs when it lost at Rennes 3-1 this month; while Monaco's first goal last Tuesday saw left back Caio Henrique finding space behind right back Achraf Hakimi and Aleksandr Golovin crossing for Balogun to head in.
Henrique and right back Vanderson both like to attack. This may force Luis Enrique to instruct his own attacking full backs, Hakimi and left back Nuno Gomes, not to push up too much.
PSG will be without star forward Ousmane Dembélé
The Ballon d’Or winner came off with a calf injury last Tuesday and missed Saturday’s home game against Metz in Ligue 1.
Dembélé has been hampered by injuries and has hardly played a full season during his career, with setbacks affecting his six seasons at Barcelona before he joined PSG.
“I don’t know how long (Dembélé will be out for), it depends on certain things," Luis Enrique said. “We don’t want to take any risks. It’s not serious but we need to be patient.”
Fabián Ruiz remains sidelined. The Spain midfielder has not played for PSG since hurting his left knee on Jan. 20 in the 2-1 defeat at Sporting Lisbon.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Monaco's Folarin Balogun celebrates with teammates after scoring his side's second goal during the first-leg of the Champions League playoff soccer match between Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain in Monaco, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)
Monaco's Folarin Balogun, second right, scores the opening goal during the first-leg of the Champions League playoff soccer match between Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain in Monaco, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Philippe Magoni)
FILE - Monaco's Ansu Fati, right, is congratulated by Monaco's Takumi Minamino after scoring his sides first goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Club Brugge and Monaco at the Jan Breydel Stadium in Bruges, Belgium, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Havana, file)
PSG's head coach Luis Enrique reacts during the French League One soccer match between Paris Saint-Germain and Metz in Paris, France, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva)
