Home Depot Raises Dividend After Mixed Results

February 25, 2014 by Paul Ausick

Plywood on a cart
Source: Thinkstock
The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2013 results before markets opened Tuesday. The home improvement retailer posted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.73 and $17.7 billion in revenues. In the same period a year ago, the home improvement store reported EPS of $0.68 on revenue of $18.25 billion. Fourth-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $0.71 and $17.91 billion in revenue.

For the full year, Home Depot posted EPS of $3.76 on revenues of $78.81 billion, compared with prior year EPS of $3.00 on revenues of $74.75 billion. The consensus estimates called for EPS of $3.74 on revenues of $79.01 billion.

Fourth quarter same-store sales at all Home Depot locations rose 4.4% year over year and 4.9% in the United States.

Home Depot raised its dividend from a quarterly payout of $0.39 to $0.47 for the current quarter.

At the end of the third quarter, the company said it expected 2013 revenue growth of 5.6% and diluted EPS of $3.72 for the full year. Home Depot beat its own EPS estimate but missed its expected revenue. Annual revenue grew 5.4%

The company’s 2014 guidance calls for sales growth of 4.8% and same-store sales growth of 4.6%. EPS is pegged at $4.38, and the company expects to repurchase $5 billion in stock. Gross margins are expected to be flat and operating margins are estimated to rise 0.7%. The company also expects to open seven new stores this year.

Competitor Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) reports results Wednesday morning and is expected to post EPS of $0.31 on revenues of $11.69 billion for the quarter. For the year the consensus estimates call for EPS of $2.17 on revenues of $53.45 billion. Lowe’s stock has outperformed Home Depot’s over the past 12 months, up more than 25% compared with a rise of about 19% for Home Depot. Year to date, however, both are down about 5%.

Home Depot’s CEO said:

In 2013, we posted our strongest comp sales growth in 14 years as solid execution and the recovering housing market aided our performance.

Shares were up about 1.3% in premarket trading, at $78.60 in a 52-week range of $63.82 to $82.57. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $88.70 before the results were announced.

Take This Retirement Quiz To Get Matched With An Advisor Now (Sponsored)

Are you ready for retirement? Planning for retirement can be overwhelming, that’s why it could be a good idea to speak to a fiduciary financial advisor about your goals today.

Start by taking this retirement quiz right here from SmartAsset that will match you with up to 3 financial advisors that serve your area and beyond in 5 minutes. Smart Asset is now matching over 50,000 people a month.

Click here now to get started.