Home Depot report

Home Depot (HD) shares reacted to the company's quarterly report by rising 2.18% before the opening of trading on Tuesday, as investor fears of a slowdown in demand for home improvement products failed to materialise.

Demand for building and home improvement products was extremely strong in the US during the pandemic, but with the lifting of quarantine restrictions and mass vaccinations, market analysts are predicting a slowdown in demand for these products.

So far, these forecasts have not been confirmed, but Home Depot management has decided not to give full-year forecasts as macro conditions in the second half of this fiscal year seem uncertain to the company.

Be that as it may, Home Depot's chairman and CEO said it had had a "good start" to the fiscal year and plans to continue "building momentum for strategic investments" as the company also develops its online sales.

Home Depot reported Q1 fiscal 2022 earnings per share growth to $3.86. 2022 to $3.86, up $0.79 from analysts' estimate of $3.07. The company's sales rose 32.7% to $37.5bn, also above the $34.89bn forecast.

Home Depot took in 447.2 million customer transactions during the quarter, up 19.3% from a year earlier. Consumers also spent more during their visits and the average check rose 10.3% to $82.37.

Home Depot shares are up 33.7% in the past 12 months and 20.5% YTD.