Lowe's Reports Higher Profit, Sales

By Kimberly Chin

Lowe's Cos. (LOW) said profit rose 5.9% for the first quarter as the company had lower expenses and taxes compared with the comparable quarter a year earlier.

However, adjusted earnings were $1.22 a share, below the $1.33 a share analysts had expected.

The company reported net income of $1.05 billion, or $1.31 a share, up from $988 million, or $1.19 a share, for the comparable quarter a year prior. Analysts polled by Refinitiv were expecting a profit of $1.31 a share.

Lowe's said it sold the assets of its businesses in Mexico rather than exit the retail operations as initially planned. This resulted in a tax benefit of $82 million offsetting $12 million of operating costs from the operations during the quarter.

Net sales rose 2.2% to $17.74 billion from a year ago. Analysts estimated revenue of $17.66 billion.

Comparable sales rose 3.5% while comparable sales in the U.S. rose 4.2%. Analysts polled by Consensus Metrix expected a 3.2% rise overall and in the U.S.

Write to Kimberly Chin at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 22, 2019 06:45 ET (10:45 GMT)

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