Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW) cut its full-year outlook Tuesday, as lumber prices fell and do-it-yourself customers bought fewer discretionary items.
It lowered its forecast even as it beat Wall Street’s revenue and earnings expectations for the fiscal first quarter.
In the three-month period ended May 5, earnings per share came in at $3.67 adjusted vs. $3.44 expected. Revenue proved to be $22.35 billion vs. $21.6 billion expected.
Lowe’s net income for the three-month period was $2.26 billion, or $3.77 per share, compared with $2.33 billion, or $3.51 per share, a year earlier.
Net sales fell to $22.35 billion from $23.66 billion in the year-ago period, but exceeded Wall Street’s expectations.
Comparable sales dropped 4.3% in the fiscal first quarter. That’s lower than the 3.4% decline that Wall Street expected.
The home improvement retailer said it now expects total sales for the full year to range between $87 billion and $89 billion, lower than the $88 billion to $90 billion it had previously forecast. It said it expects comparable sales to decline by 2% to 4% this fiscal year, below the flat to down 2% that it had said before.
CEO Marvin Ellison said in the company’s news release that lumber deflation, unfavorable weather and lower spending by DIY customers hurt quarterly sales. He said the lowered forecast reflects weaker-than-expected consumer demand.
LOW shares gathered $2.86, or 1.4%, to $206.01.