Lowe's earnings beat as sales jump more than 10% despite sluggish housing market

In this articleLowe's topped Wall Street's quarterly revenue and earnings expectations on Wednesday, as the retailer's quarterly sales grew more than 10% year over year.The home improvement company said it expects total sales for the full current fiscal year to range between $92 billion and $94 billion, which would be a roughly 7% to 9% increase over the prior year. It said it expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $12.25 and $12.75 for the full year. Lowe's said it expects comparable sales, a metric that takes out one-time factors, to be approximately flat to up 2%.In a news release, CEO Marvin Ellison said the company's strategy is resonating with its do-it-yourself customers and home professionals, even as higher mortgage rates and slower real estate sales challenge its industry."While the housing macro remains pressured, we are focused on directing what is within our control, which includes our ongoing productivity initiatives," he said. "We remain confident that we are well-positioned to take share regardless of the macro environment."Shares fell in premarket trading as Lowe's earnings projections for the year fell short of analysts' consensus expectations of $12.95, according to LSEG.Here's what Lowe's reported for the fiscal fourth quarter compared with Wall Street's estimates, according to a survey of analysts by LSEG:Lowe's net income for the three-month period that ended Jan. 30 dropped to $999 million, or $1.78 per share, from $1.13 billion, or $1.99 per share, in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose from $18.55 billion in the year-ago period.Comparable sales for the quarter rose 1.3%, higher than the 0.2% that analysts were expecting, according to StreetAccount.Its competitor, Home Depot, on Tuesday beat Wall Street's earnings and revenue expectations, but stuck by conservative full-year guidance. Its quarterly results reflected that home improvement demand remains tepid, as U.S. consumers continue to put off big projects because of high borrowing costs and housing prices as well as economic concerns.As of Tuesday's close, Lowe's shares are up nearly 16% year-to-date, surpassing the S&P 500's roughly 1% gains during the same period. Its stock is up about 15% over the past year, almost matching the S&P 500's approximately 16% gains over that time. Got a confidential news tip? We want to hear from you.Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inboxGet this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.© 2026 Versant Media, LLC.

All Rights Reserved. A Versant Media Company. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by