Benzinga -
- Home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc (NYSE: HD) reported fourth-quarter FY22 sales growth of 0.3% year-on-year to $35.83 billion, marginally missing the consensus of $35.97 billion.
- Customer transactions for the quarter fell 6%. Comparable sales decreased 0.3%, and comparable sales in the U.S. slipped 0.3%.
- Gross profit rose 0.5% Y/Y to $11.9 billion. The operating margin was 13.3%, and operating income for the quarter fell 1.5% to $4.75 billion.
- The operating expenses increased 1.9% Y/Y to $7.2 billion.
- EPS of $3.30 beat the analyst consensus of $3.28.
- The average ticket in Q4 was $90.05, a 5.8% growth, and sales per square foot declined 0.1% to $571.15.
- The company held $2.8 billion in cash and equivalents as of January 29, 2022. Net cash provided by operating activities for the year totaled $14.62 billion.
- Beginning in Q1 of FY23, Home Depot will invest an additional approximately $1 billion in annualized compensation for frontline, hourly associates.
- The company’s board of directors approved a 10% increase in its quarterly dividend to $2.09 per share, which equates to an annual dividend of $8.36 per share.
- The dividend is payable on March 23, 2023, to shareholders of record on the close of business on March 9, 2023.
- Outlook FY23: Home Depot sees sales growth and comparable sales growth to be approximately flat compared to FY22.
- HD forecasts EPS-percent -decline to be mid-single digits. The company expects an FY23 operating margin of 14.5%.
- Price Action: HD shares traded lower by 3.96% at $305.37 in premarket on the last check Tuesday.