Home Depot maintains full-year forecast even as it misses on earnings for second straight quarter

Financial Performance - Home Depot's earnings per share (EPS) was $4.68, missing the expected $4.71 [1] - Revenue reached $45.3 billion, slightly below the anticipated $45.35 billion [1] - Comparable sales increased by 1%, falling short of the expected 1.3% [1] - Foreign exchange rates negatively impacted comparable sales by approximately 40 basis points [2] Guidance and Outlook - Home Depot reaffirmed its full-year guidance despite the Q2 miss [2] - Same-store sales showed increasing strength throughout the quarter, with growth of 0.3% in May, 0.5% in June, and 3.3% in July [4] - The company believes the breadth of strength across different departments supports the reaffirmation of full-year guidance [4] Strategic Initiatives - Home Depot sources over 50% of its goods in the United States [6] - The company aims to reduce reliance on any single country outside the US for more than 10% of its products, targeting achievement by early next year [6] - Home Depot is seeing strength in larger ticket items for do-it-yourselfers, such as patios, grills, outdoor power equipment, and appliances [8] External Factors - Higher interest rates have been an issue for Home Depot and Lowe's, impacting big-ticket renovations [7] - Consumer strength picked up in May, June, and July [11]