Home Depot 4Q profit rides strong home improvement market

NEW YORK (AP) — A strong home-improvement market pushed Home Depot’s profit higher in the fourth quarter, topping expectations.

The Atlanta company’s profit rose 5.6 percent to $1.78 billion, or $1.52 per share, for the three months ended Jan. 28. Earnings, adjusted for pretax expenses, were $1.69 per share.

Revenue rose 7.5 percent to $23.88 billion on an increase in customers at existing stores. Same-store sales, a key measure of a retailer’s health, increased 7.5 percent.

Along with a strong housing market pushing more people to invest in their homes, hurricane recovery efforts in southern states and Puerto Rico also helped boost revenue.

Analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research expected a quarterly profit of $1.62 per share and $23.66 billion in revenue.

Shares rose more than 2 percent before the market open on Tuesday.

For the full year, Home Depot’s profit climbed 8.5 percent to $8.63 billion as revenue jumped 6.7 percent to $100.9 billion.

Home Depot Inc. is currently heading into its busy spring season and recently said that it would hire over 80,000 seasonal workers. It also announced an app to allow for self-scheduling interviews.