Lowe’s Stock In Focus After Q3 Earnings Beat, Upgraded EPS Guidance: Retail Applauds Results
Synopsis
Revenue declined over 1% year-over-year to $20.17 billion during the quarter but surpassed a Wall Street estimate of $19.95 billion.
Home improvement firm Lowe's Companies Inc ($LOWE) on Tuesday announced its third-quarter (Q3) earnings that exceeded Wall Street expectations but lowered its comparable sales guidance for the full year.
Revenue declined over 1% year-over-year (YoY) to $20.17 billion during the quarter but surpassed a Wall Street estimate of $19.95 billion. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $2.89, beating an analyst estimate of $2.82. Net income fell nearly 4.4% YoY to $1.695 billion.
Lowe’s saw comparable sales for the quarter fall 1.1%, driven by continued softness in DIY bigger-ticket discretionary demand, which was partly offset by storm-related sales and positive comparable sales in Pro and online.
During the quarter, Lowe’s repurchased approximately 2.9 million shares for $758 million, and paid $654 million in dividends.
For the full-year 2024, the company expects total sales of $83.0 to $83.5 billion versus an earlier guidance of $82.7 to $83.2 billion. Comparable sales are expected to decline 3.0 to 3.5%.
Adjusted diluted EPS is expected to come in at approximately $11.80 to $11.90 versus an earlier forecast of $11.70 to $11.90 while adjusted operating margin is anticipated at 12.3% to 12.4%.
As of Nov. 1, 2024, the company operated 1,747 stores representing 195 million square feet of retail selling space.
Following the release of the earnings report, retail sentiment on Stocktwits jumped into the ‘extremely bullish’ territory (86/100) from ‘bearish’ a day ago. The move was accompanied by ‘extremely high’ message volume (94/100) that hit a one-year high.
Recently, Morgan Stanley reportedly raised its price target on Lowe's to $300 from $255, while keeping an ‘Overweight’ rating on the shares.
Shares of Lowe’s were trading over 2% lower in Tuesday’s pre-market session. On a year-to-date basis, the stock has gained over 24%.
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