Home Depot Beats on Its Strongest Comparable Sales Since 2022, Holds Its Guidance

Home Depot shares held a small gain in early-afternoon trading Tuesday, changing hands at $339.49, up 0.5% from Monday’s close of $337.88, while the broader market slid toward two-week lows. The quarter beat estimates. The home-improvement retailer topped Wall Street’s second-quarter sales and profit forecasts before the open and left its full-year outlook in place.

Comparable sales rose 1.7%, the strongest in nearly three years

Net sales reached $47.9 billion for the quarter that ended August 2, up 5.7% from a year earlier. Comparable sales, the industry’s gauge of demand at established stores, climbed 1.7% overall and 1.3% in the United States. Both beat forecasts. Analysts had looked for about 0.9%, and the 1.7% reading was Home Depot’s best comparable-sales result since the fall of 2022. Adjusted earnings came to $4.92 a share, ahead of the about $4.73 analysts had penciled in. Reported diluted earnings were $4.79, on net income of $4.8 billion and operating income of $6.84 billion.

Tariff refunds and a nationwide delivery push shape the quarter

Management reaffirmed its fiscal 2026 guidance: total sales growth of 2.5% to 4.5%, comparable sales anywhere from flat to up 2%, and adjusted earnings-per-share growth between flat and 4% against last year’s $14.69. The outlook still calls for a gross margin of 33.1% and 15 new store openings. Chief Financial Officer Richard McPhail told analysts the company received $730 million in tariff refunds during the quarter. It used $685 million of that to lower the cost of goods sold and left the rest in inventory. McPhail said those refunds would be fully offset by fuel, energy and other cost pressures before the year is out.

The company also finished rolling out its Express Delivery service nationwide for professional and do-it-yourself customers. Online comparable sales rose 11%. That marked a fifth straight quarter of double-digit digital growth.

Shoppers keep the projects small

The strength came from smaller jobs. Customers made fewer trips but spent more when they came, and executives described a housing market that stays frozen as high mortgage rates keep homeowners from moving or financing large renovations. McPhail said the quarter’s results exceeded the company’s own expectations, with broad-based demand as customers engaged in smaller projects. That pattern has held for several quarters. It kept the top line growing even as bigger remodels stayed on hold.

The stock heading into the print

Home Depot came into Tuesday little changed over three months and down 2% over the past 30 days, having eased from the mid-$350s in early August to Monday’s close. Momentum had cooled. Volume on Monday ran roughly one and a half times its 20-day average. The stock trades 23% below its 52-week high of $439.37 and 17% above the year’s low of $289.10. Its market value sits at $339 billion.

What to watch

The session close will show whether the early gain survives a weak tape. More retail follows. Lowe’s and Target report Wednesday, and Walmart follows Thursday, together offering a fuller read on how U.S. shoppers are spending as the back-to-school season winds down. Home Depot’s next quarterly report is due in November.

This is a general-market summary for information only — not investment advice, and not a recommendation regarding any security.