Lowe's 1Q results rise, but miss expectations
MOORESVILLE, N.C. - Home-improvement retailer Lowe's fiscal first-quarter net income climbed 16 percent, bolstered in part by a lower tax rate.
But its revenue and its profit adjusted to exclude the effect of one-time items missed analysts' estimates as poor weather kept customers from stores during the beginning of the key spring selling season.
Nonetheless, the company raised its full-year earnings forecast on Wednesday.
Spring is the most important season for home improvement retailers as Americans start spending more on outdoor projects. But a wet and cold spring has put a damper on shoppers starting on yard and garden products. On Tuesday Lowe's larger rival Home Depot Inc. also said bad weather hurt its first-quarter results.
"We executed well during the quarter, despite an unexpectedly prolonged winter in many areas of the country," Lowe's CEO Robert Niblock said.
Niblock said in a statement that unfavorable weather conditions lowered traffic and hurt the sales of products in its exterior categories - like patio and gardening goods. But he added that results for indoor categories - such as plumbing parts and indoor paints - were solid.
Niblock also said that results have gotten better in May.
Lowe's shares fell 27 cents to $45.25 in midday trading. The stock is down about 8 percent since the beginning of the year.
For the three months ended May 2, Lowe's Cos. earned $624 million, or 61 cents per share. A year ago the Mooresville, North Carolina, company earned $540 million, or 49 cents per share.
The lower tax rate added 4 cents per share to the latest quarter's earnings, while asset impairment charges reduced earnings by 1 cent.
Excluding these items, earnings were 58 cents per share.
Analysts polled by FactSet forecast earnings of 60 cents per share.
Revenue rose 2 percent to $13.4 billion from $13.09 billion, but still fell short of Wall Street's prediction of $13.89 billion.
Going forward, Lowe's now sees fiscal 2014 earnings of about $2.63 per share. Its prior guidance was for earnings of about $2.60 per share. Revenue is still expected to rise by approximately 5 percent. Based on fiscal 2013's revenue of $53.42 billion, that implies about $56.1 billion.
Analysts expect full-year earnings of $2.62 per share on revenue of $56.03 billion.