Lowe's Cos. Inc. reported a more than 15% year-over-year improvement in first-quarter earnings May 23, though its earnings per share came in just under consensus expectations.
The North Carolina-based home improvement retailer reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.19 for the quarter ended May 4, up 15.5% from $1.03 in the prior-year period. Net earnings totaled $988 million.
The S&P Capital IQ mean consensus estimate for normalized EPS for the 2018 first quarter was $1.21.
First-quarter sales rose 3% year over year to $17.36 billion from $16.86 billion, while comparable sales ticked up 0.6%. First-quarter sales included a $130 million increase due to the company's adoption of accounting standard ASU No. 2014-09 related to the recognition of revenue, specifically profit sharing from the company's credit program and from selling, general and administrative expenses. The accounting change had no impact on comparable sales or earnings per share, Lowe's said.
Lowe's repurchased $250 million in common stock during the quarter.
For the fiscal year ending Feb. 1, 2019, Lowe's expects diluted earnings per share of $5.40 to $5.50, a total sales increase of 5% year over year and a comparable sales increase of 3.5%.
