ATLANTA, February 26, 2019 -- The Home Depot®, the world's largest home improvement retailer, today reported sales of $26.5 billion for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, a 10.9 percent increase from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. Comparable sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 were positive 3.2 percent, and comp sales in the U.S. were positive 3.7 percent.
The fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 consisted of 14 weeks compared with 13 weeks for the prior year. The 14th week added approximately $1.7 billion in sales for the quarter and the year. The additional week is not included in comparable sales results for the quarter or the year.
Net earnings for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 were $2.3 billion, or $2.09 per diluted share, compared with net earnings of $1.8 billion, or $1.52 per diluted share, in the same period of fiscal 2017. The 14th week added approximately $0.21 per diluted share for the quarter and year.
Net earnings for the fourth quarter and the year were negatively impacted by a nonrecurring, pre-tax charge of approximately $247 million, or $184 million after tax equaling $0.16 per diluted share, due to an impairment loss related to certain trade names at Interline Brands.
Fiscal 2018
Sales for fiscal 2018 were $108.2 billion, an increase of 7.2 percent from fiscal 2017. Total company comparable sales for fiscal 2018 increased 5.2 percent, and comp sales in the U.S. were positive 5.4 percent for the year.
Earnings per diluted share in fiscal 2018 were $9.73, compared to $7.29 per diluted share in fiscal 2017, an increase of 33.5 percent.
“We achieved record sales and net earnings in fiscal 2018, while making great progress on the strategic investments we laid out in December of 2017. We focused on enhancing the interconnected retail experience for our customers, providing localized and innovative product, and delivering best in class productivity,” said Craig Menear, chairman, CEO and president. “Our view on the health of the economy and the consumer, as well as the momentum of our strategic investments, supports our belief that we can deliver comparable sales growth of 5.0 percent in fiscal 2019. I would like to thank our associates for their solid execution and exceptional work in service to our customers.”
Dividend Declaration and Share Repurchase Authorization
The Company today announced that its board of directors declared a 32.0 percent increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.36 per share.
“As a testament to our commitment to create value for our shareholders and a demonstration of confidence in the business going forward, the board has increased the dividend for the tenth consecutive year,” said Menear. The dividend is payable on March 28, 2019, to shareholders of record on the close of business on March 14, 2019. This is the 128th consecutive quarter the Company has paid a cash dividend.
The board of directors also authorized a new $15 billion share repurchase program, replacing its previous authorization.
Fiscal 2019 Guidance
The Company provided the following guidance for fiscal 2019, a 52-week year compared to fiscal 2018, a 53-week year:
- Comparable sales growth of approximately 5.0 percent for the comparable 52-week period
- Sales growth of approximately 3.3 percent
- Five net new stores
- Gross margin of approximately 34.0 percent
- Operating margin of approximately 14.4 percent
- Net interest expense of approximately $1.2 billion
- Tax rate of approximately 25.5 percent
- Share repurchases of approximately $5.0 billion
- Diluted earnings-per-share growth of approximately 3.1 percent to $10.03
- Capital spending of approximately $2.7 billion
- Depreciation and amortization expense of approximately $2.3 billion
- Cash flow from the business of approximately $14.1 billion
Long-Term Financial Targets
Today the Company reaffirms its fiscal 2020 financial targets as follows:
- Total sales ranging from approximately $115 billion to approximately $120 billion
- Operating margin ranging from approximately 14.4 percent to approximately 15.0 percent
- Return on invested capital of more than 40 percent
The Home Depot will conduct a conference call today at 9 a.m. ET to discuss information included in this news release and related matters. The conference call will be available in its entirety through a webcast and replay at ir.homedepot.com/events-and-presentations.
At the end of the fourth quarter, the Company operated a total of 2,287 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces and Mexico. The Company employs more than 400,000 associates. The Home Depot's stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HD) and is included in the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index.
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Certain statements contained herein constitute “forward-looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may relate to, among other things, the demand for our products and services; net sales growth; comparable sales; effects of competition; implementation of store, interconnected retail, supply chain and technology initiatives; inventory and in-stock positions; state of the economy; state of the residential construction, housing and home improvement markets; state of the credit markets, including mortgages, home equity loans and consumer credit; issues related to the payment methods we accept; demand for credit offerings; management of relationships with our associates, suppliers and vendors; continuation of share repurchase programs; net earnings performance; earnings per share; dividend targets; capital allocation and expenditures; liquidity; return on invested capital; expense leverage; stock-based compensation expense; commodity price inflation and deflation; the ability to issue debt on terms and at rates acceptable to us; the impact and expected outcome of investigations, inquiries, claims and litigation; the effect of accounting charges; the effect of adopting certain accounting standards; the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and other regulatory changes; store openings and closures; guidance for fiscal 2019 and beyond; financial outlook; and the integration of acquired companies into our organization and the ability to recognize the anticipated synergies and benefits of those acquisitions. Forward-looking statements are based on currently available information and our current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events. You should not rely on our forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to future events, risks and uncertainties – many of which are beyond our control, dependent on the actions of third parties, or are currently unknown to us – as well as potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations and projections. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those described in Item 1A, “Risk Factors,” and elsewhere in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for our fiscal year ended January 28, 2018 and in our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we do not undertake to update these statements other than as required by law. You are advised, however, to review any further disclosures we make on related subjects in our periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
For more information, contact:
Financial Community
Isabel Janci
Vice President of Investor Relations
770-384-2666
isabel_janci@homedepot.com
News Media
Stephen Holmes
Senior Director of Corporate Communications
770-384-5075
stephen_holmes@homedepot.com
