MW Lowe's sales fall, as customers are avoiding products that cost $500 or more

By Steve Gelsi

Home-improvement retailer beats earnings and same-store sales mark, a day after larger rival Home Depot fell short

Lowe's Cos.' stock lost ground Wednesday after the home improvement retailer warned its second-quarter same-store sales are being impacted by unfavorable weather in some areas, although it fared better than rival Home Depot against Wall Street expectations in its most recent quarter.

Lowe's $(LOW)$ also said consumers continued to avoid purchases of bigger-ticket items of $500 or more.

"We've yet to really see at scale the consumer re-engage in larger discretionary categories, still mainly sitting on the sidelines," Chief Financial Officer Brandon Sink said. "The good news is the trends aren't getting any worse."

The Mooresville, N.C.-based home-improvement retailer said it expects second-quarter same-store sales growth to be 150 basis points above the bottom end of its full-year guidance of zero to 1%. That works out to a 1.5% increase in second-quarter same-store sales, slightly below the FactSet consensus estimate for 1.6% same-store sales growth.

Lowe's pointed to poor weather in the country in its earnings call. It also said it faces housing-market headwinds and near-term economic uncertainty, but kept its 2025 earnings projections in place.

Lowe's stock fell 1.6% in midday trading.

First-quarter comparable sales decreased 1.7% as unfavorable weather earlier in the quarter was partially offset by growth in online comparable sales and its professional products business, the company said. But that was better than the average analyst estimate compiled by FactSet for a decline of 2.1%.

Lowe's reported a first-quarter profit that fell to $2.92 a share from $3.06 a share, but topped the FactSet consensus estimate of $2.89 a share.

First-quarter revenue fell to $20.93 billion from $21.4 billion, and matched the analyst projection of $20.93 billion.

On Tuesday, Home Depot $(HD)$ had missed Wall Street's profit estimate - the first miss in five years - while falling short on global same-store sales, although it came in ahead of analysts' revenue estimates and narrowly beat the U.S. same-store sales projections.

The retailer's gross profit margin rose to 33.4% of sales from 33.2% in the year-ago period.

Meanwhile, Home Depot's gross profit margins slipped to 33.8% from 34.1% in the year-ago quarter.

Also read: Why Home Depot's approach to prices and tariffs will 'likely play better' to Trump administration

Looking ahead, Lowe's said it continues to expect full-year 2025 earnings of $12.15 a share to $12.40 a share, while analysts are looking for earnings of $12.21 a share.

Truist analyst Scot Ciccarelli reiterated a buy rating on Lowe's and said the retailer's results will gain traction as the year progresses.

"With what appears to be an increasingly stable base of core home improvement demand, despite macro/tariff uncertainties, we remain buyers of [Lowe's stock] as we expect continued improvement in sales/earnings," he said.

The company said it reopened its East Asheville store in May after it was submerged in more than 18 feet of water during Hurricane Helene last year.

It's on track to open five to 10 new stores later this year, in line with its forecast.

Lowe's stock has dropped 7.8% in 2025, while Home Depot shares have lost 4% and the S&P 500 index SPX has gained 0.8%.

-Steve Gelsi

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May 21, 2025 12:41 ET (16:41 GMT)

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