Home Depot, Lowe's outlook rises approaching record earnings

Nov. 20 (UPI) -- As the housing market bounces back, so does Home Depot. The major U.S. home-improvement retailer's earnings rose 43 percent for its third quarter. It's competitor, Lowe's, also reported rising profits.

This is compared with electronics retailer Best Buy and consumer goods retailer Walmart, which both reported earnings below Wall Street's expectations and face fierce competition moving into the holiday season, setting price wars to draw in more consumers.

Lowe's profits rose 26 percent to $499 million, or 47 cents per share, up from $396 million, or 35 cents per share, in the year-ago period. This is a penny lower than Wall Street expected. Sales rose 7.3 percent to $12.96 billion.

This compares with Home Depot, where sales rose 7.4 percent to $19.47 billion. Profits rose to $1.35 billion, or 95 cents per share, compared with $947 million, or 63 cents per share in the year-ago period. Analysts expected 90 cents per share.

And while both companies raised year forecasts for the next quarter, analysts expect Home Depot to be better positioned due to better marketing and inventory.

[MarketWatch] [Wall Street Journal] [Forbes]