Updated! Atlanta — The Home Depot said the recovering U.S. housing market and solid execution contributed to a strong fiscal fourth quarter.
Net income rose 36.1 percent to $1.4 billion for the three months, ended Feb. 1. Net sales rose 8.3 percent to $19.2 billion, and U.S. comp-store sales increased nearly 9 percent.
Majap comps rose by the double digits, driven by Black Friday sales events, the company said.
For the full fiscal year, net earnings increased nearly 18 percent to $6.3 billion; net sales rose 5.5 percent to $83.2 billion, and U.S. comps increased 6.1 percent.
“We had a strong finish to the year,” said chairman/president/CEO Craig Menear, who credited factors both external (the housing market recovery) and internal (“solid execution”) for the strong showing. He added that product categories performed well across the store.
On an earnings call, Menear said fourth-quarter sales were boosted by a “strong response” to Home Depot’s Black Friday promotions, and cited record traffic and orders for the week of Cyber Monday. For the full year, online sales grew more than 36 percent to over $1 billion, he said, and nearly 40 percent of those orders were picked up in-store.
Looking ahead, the company is expanding its outdoor assortment of major appliances this spring with the exclusive launch of Nexgrill and several exclusive models from Weber and Kitchenaid. Offerings now range from premium grills to pizza ovens, said merchandising executive VP Ted Decker, and 170 more stores have been targeted for expanded appliance departments.
