Home Depot profits rise, helped by new stores
Reuters Story - November 17, 1998 21:31
ATLANTA, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The Home Depot , the world's largest home improvement retailer, on Tuesday posted a 31 percent rise in third-quarter results that beat Wall Street analyst expectations by a cent a share.
The company said it earned $392 million or 26 cents a diluted share, compared to $0.20 in the third quarter of fiscal 1997, and sales jumped 24 percent to $7.70 billion compared to $6.217 billion in the third quarter of fiscal 1997.
"The Home Depot is thriving in an industry that offers many opportunities for continued growth, and we are excited about our prospects for the future," Arthur Blank, the company's president and CEO, said in a prepared statement.
Home Depot's stock was up 25 cents to $47.63 in afternoon trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
The Atlanta-based chain said it opened 38 new stores during the third quarter, including its first two stores outside North America. But even the company's older stores did well during the quarter, with sales at comparable stores -- those open at least a year -- up 7 percent from a year earlier.
At the end of the third quarter, Home Depot was operating a total of 717 stores, including 668 Home Depot stores and 6 EXPO Design Centers in the United States, 41 Home Depot stores in Canada, and 1 Home Depot store each in Chile and Puerto Rico.
Home Depot's year-earlier results exclude a $104 million or 4 cents a share pretax non-recurring charge against earnings. Including the charge, this year's third quarter net earnings increased 66 percent, and diluted earnings per share rose 63 percent. |
