The Home Depot Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2020 Results; Increases Quarterly Dividend by 10 Percent

ATLANTA, Feb. 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Home Depot(®), the world's largest home improvement retailer, today reported fourth quarter and fiscal 2020 results.

Fourth Quarter 2020

Sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 were $32.3 billion, an increase of $6.5 billion, or 25.1 percent from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019. Comparable sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 increased 24.5 percent, and comparable sales in the U.S. increased 25.0 percent.

Net earnings for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 were $2.9 billion, or $2.65 per diluted share, compared with net earnings of $2.5 billion, or $2.28 per diluted share, in the same period of fiscal 2019. For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020, diluted earnings per share increased 16.2 percent from the same period in the prior year. Net earnings for the fourth quarter and the fiscal year were negatively impacted by non-recurring, pre-tax expenses related to the completion of the acquisition of HD Supply Holdings, Inc. on December 24, 2020, which totaled approximately $110 million, or $0.09 per diluted share.

Fiscal 2020

Sales for fiscal 2020 were $132.1 billion, an increase of $21.9 billion, or 19.9 percent, from fiscal 2019. Comparable sales for fiscal 2020 increased 19.7 percent, and comparable sales in the U.S. increased 20.6 percent.

Net earnings for fiscal 2020 were $12.9 billion, or $11.94 per diluted share, compared with net earnings of $11.2 billion, or $10.25 per diluted share in fiscal 2019. For fiscal year 2020, diluted earnings per share increased 16.5 percent versus the prior year.

"The team demonstrated ongoing flexibility to operate effectively in a very challenging environment and deliver record-breaking sales and earnings. Our ability to grow the business by over $21 billion in fiscal 2020 is a testament to both the investments we have made in the business as well as our associates' unwavering commitment to our customers," said Craig Menear, chairman and CEO. "We continue to lean into these investments because we believe they are critical in enabling market share growth in any economic environment. I am proud of the many ways our associates lived our values by serving our customers, communities and each other during these unquestionably challenging times, and I would like to thank them and our supplier partners for their extraordinary efforts."

Fiscal 2021

Given the uncertainty related to the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and its influence on the consumer, the Company believes it is limited in its ability to forecast demand for fiscal 2021. As a result, the Company is not providing guidance for fiscal 2021.

"We were pleased with our record financial performance in fiscal 2020. As we look ahead to fiscal 2021, while we are not able to predict how consumer spending will evolve, if the demand environment during the back half of fiscal 2020 were to persist through fiscal 2021, it would imply flat to slightly positive comparable sales growth and operating margin of at least 14 percent," said Richard McPhail, executive vice president and CFO.

Dividend Declaration

The Company today announced that its board of directors approved an increase in its quarterly dividend by 10.0 percent to $1.65 per share, which equates to an annual dividend of $6.60.

The dividend is payable on March 25, 2021, to shareholders of record on the close of business on March 11, 2021. This is the 136(th) consecutive quarter the Company has paid a cash dividend.

The Home Depot will conduct a conference call today at 9 a.m. ET to discuss information included in this news release and related matters. The conference call will be available in its entirety through a webcast and replay at ir.homedepot.com/events-and-presentations.

At the end of the fourth quarter, the Company operated a total of 2,296 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces and Mexico. The Company employs approximately 500,000 associates. The Home Depot's stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HD) and is included in the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index.

###

Certain statements contained herein constitute "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may relate to, among other things, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the related recovery on our business, operations and financial results (which, among other things, may affect many of the items listed below); the demand for our products and services; net sales growth; comparable sales; effects of competition; our brand and reputation; implementation of store, interconnected retail, supply chain and technology initiatives; inventory and in-stock positions; state of the economy; state of the housing and home improvement markets; state of the credit markets, including mortgages, home equity loans and consumer credit; impact of tariffs; issues related to the payment methods we accept; demand for credit offerings; management of relationships with our associates, suppliers and service providers; international trade disputes, natural disasters, public health issues (including pandemics and quarantines, related shut-downs and other governmental orders, and similar restrictions, as well as subsequent re-openings), and other business interruptions that could disrupt supply or delivery of, or demand for, the Company's products or services; continuation or suspension of share repurchases; net earnings performance; earnings per share; dividend targets; capital allocation and expenditures; liquidity; return on invested capital; expense leverage; stock-based compensation expense; commodity price inflation and deflation; the ability to issue debt on terms and at rates acceptable to us; the impact and expected outcome of investigations, inquiries, claims and litigation, including compliance with related settlements; the effect of accounting charges; the effect of adopting certain accounting standards; the impact of regulatory changes, including changes to tax laws and regulations; store openings and closures; guidance for fiscal 2021 and beyond; financial outlook; and the impact of acquired companies, including HD Supply, on our organization and the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of those acquisitions. Forward-looking statements are based on currently available information and our current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events. You should not rely on our forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to future events, risks and uncertainties - many of which are beyond our control, dependent on the actions of third parties, or are currently unknown to us - as well as potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations and projections. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those described in Item 1A, "Risk Factors," and elsewhere in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for our fiscal year ended February 2, 2020 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended November 1, 2020.

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we do not undertake to update these statements other than as required by law. You are advised, however, to review any further disclosures we make on related subjects in our periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

                                                                                                                                                               
            
              THE HOME DEPOT, INC.

                                                                                                                                                   
            
              CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF EARNINGS

                                                                                                                                                                    
            
              (Unaudited)


                                                                                                                          Three Months Ended                                                                                 
            
              Fiscal Year Ended



       
              
                in millions, except per share data                                           January 31,                                          February 2,                                    % Change                                 January 31,      February 2,                  % Change
                                                                                                                    2021                                  2020                                                                     2021                               2020

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            ---


       Net sales                                                                                                          $
            32,261                                                 $
            25,782                           25.1                                            $
          132,110                     $
       110,225   19.9
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        %                                                                                               %



       Cost of sales                                                                                             21,430                                  17,046                                                   25.7                            87,257                                        72,653               20.1




       Gross profit                                                                                              10,831                                   8,736                                                   24.0                            44,853                                        37,572               19.4



       Operating expenses:



       Selling, general and administrative                                                                        6,187                                   4,814                                                   28.5                            24,447                                        19,740               23.8



       Depreciation and amortization                                                                                561                                     519                                                    8.1                             2,128                                         1,989                7.0



       Total operating expenses                                                                                   6,748                                   5,333                                                   26.5                            26,575                                        21,729               22.3




       Operating income                                                                                           4,083                                   3,403                                                   20.0                            18,278                                        15,843               15.4



       Interest and other (income) expense:



       Interest and investment income                                                                              (10)                                   (17)                                                (41.2)                             (47)                                         (73)            (35.6)



       Interest expense                                                                                             337                                     309                                                    9.1                             1,347                                         1,201               12.2



       Interest and other, net                                                                                      327                                     292                                                   12.0                             1,300                                         1,128               15.2




       Earnings before provision for income taxes                                                                 3,756                                   3,111                                                   20.7                            16,978                                        14,715               15.4



       Provision for income taxes                                                                                   899                                     630                                                   42.7                             4,112                                         3,473               18.4




       Net earnings                                                                                                        $
            2,857                                                  $
            2,481                           15.2                                             $
          12,866                      $
       11,242   14.4
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        %                                                                                               %






       Basic weighted average common shares                                                                       1,074                                   1,083                                                  (0.8)                            1,074                                         1,093              (1.7)
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    %                                                                                               %



       Basic earnings per share                                                                                             $
            2.66                                                   $
            2.29                           16.2                                              $
          11.98                       $
       10.29   16.4





       Diluted weighted average common shares                                                                     1,078                                   1,088                                                  (0.9)                            1,078                                         1,097              (1.7)
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    %                                                                                               %



       Diluted earnings per share                                                                                           $
            2.65                                                   $
            2.28                           16.2                                              $
          11.94                       $
       10.25   16.5




                                                                                                                          Three Months Ended                                                                                 
            
              Fiscal Year Ended




       
              
                Selected Sales Data
              
        (1)                                       January 31,                                          February 2,                                    % Change                                 January 31,      February 2,                  % Change
                                                                                                                    2021                                  2020                                                                     2021                               2020

    ---                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     ---


       Customer transactions (in millions)                                                                        416.8                                   369.6                                                   12.8                           1,756.3                                       1,616.0                8.7
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    %                                                                                               %



       Average ticket                                                                                                      $
            75.69                                                  $
            68.29                           10.8                                              $
          74.32                       $
       67.30   10.4



       Sales per retail square foot                                                                                       $
            528.01                                                 $
            425.70                           24.0                                             $
          543.74                      $
       454.82   19.6



       ----- 
            
            
              
                (1)  
         Selected Sales Data does not include results for the legacy Interline Brands business, now operating as a part of The Home Depot Pro, or results for HD Supply Holdings, Inc.

                                                 
          
              THE HOME DEPOT, INC.

                                        
              
          CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

                                                     
        
                (Unaudited)


                                  in millions                      January 31,                              February 2,
                                                                          2021                       2020

                                                                                                     ---


     
                Assets



     Current assets:


      Cash and cash equivalents                                                   $
              7,895                    $
       2,133



     Receivables, net                                                   2,992                        2,106



     Merchandise inventories                                           16,627                       14,531



     Other current assets                                                 963                        1,040




     Total current assets                                              28,477                       19,810



      Net property and equipment                                        24,705                       22,770


      Operating lease right-of-use
       assets                                                            5,962                        5,595



     Goodwill                                                           7,126                        2,254



     Other assets                                                       4,311                          807




     Total assets                                                               $
              70,581                   $
       51,236





                   Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity



     Current liabilities:



     Short-term debt                                             
              $                                          $
       974



     Accounts payable                                                  11,606                        7,787


      Accrued salaries and related
       expenses                                                          2,463                        1,494


      Current installments of long-term
       debt                                                              1,416                        1,839


      Current operating lease
       liabilities                                                         828                          828


      Other current liabilities                                          6,853                        5,453



      Total current liabilities                                         23,166                       18,375



      Long-term debt, excluding current
       installments                                                     35,822                       28,670


      Long-term operating lease
       liabilities                                                       5,356                        5,066



     Other liabilities                                                  2,938                        2,241




     Total liabilities                                                 67,282                       54,352



      Total stockholders' equity
       (deficit)                                                         3,299                      (3,116)



      Total liabilities and
       stockholders' equity                                                      $
              70,581                   $
       51,236


                                                                
              
                THE HOME DEPOT, INC.

                                                   
              
                CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

                                                                     
              
                (Unaudited)


                                                                                                  Fiscal Year Ended



                                  in millions                            January 31,                                           February 2,
                                                                                2021                                                   2020

                                                                                                                                       ---

                   Cash Flows from Operating Activities:



     Net earnings                                                                     $
              12,866                                             $
      11,242


      Reconciliation of net earnings to net
       cash provided by operating activities:


      Depreciation and
       amortization                                                            2,519                                                            2,296


      Stock-based
       compensation expense                                                      310                                                              251


      Changes in working
       capital                                                                 3,592                                                            (488)


      Changes in deferred
       income taxes                                                            (569)                                                             202


      Other operating
       activities                                                                121                                                              184



      Net cash provided by
       operating activities                                                   18,839                                                           13,687





                   Cash Flows from Investing Activities:


      Capital expenditures                                                   (2,463)                                                         (2,678)


      Payments for business
       acquired, net                                                         (7,780)


      Other investing
       activities                                                                 73                                                               25



      Net cash used in
       investing activities                                                 (10,170)                                                         (2,653)





                   Cash Flows from Financing Activities:


      Repayments of short-
       term debt, net                                                          (974)                                                           (365)


      Proceeds from long-
       term debt, net of
       discounts and premiums                                                  7,933                                                            3,420


      Repayments of long-
       term debt                                                             (2,872)                                                         (1,070)


      Repurchases of common
       stock                                                                   (791)                                                         (6,965)


      Proceeds from sales of
       common stock                                                              326                                                              280


      Cash dividends                                                         (6,451)                                                         (5,958)


      Other financing
       activities                                                              (154)                                                           (140)



      Net cash used in
       financing activities                                                  (2,983)                                                        (10,798)



      Change in cash and cash
       equivalents                                                             5,686                                                              236


      Effect of exchange rate
       changes on cash and
       cash equivalents                                                           76                                                              119


      Cash and cash
       equivalents at
       beginning of year                                                       2,133                                                            1,778



      Cash and cash
       equivalents at end of
       year                                                                             $
              7,895                                              $
      2,133





                   Note: Effective February 3, 2020, we reclassified cash flows relating to book overdrafts from financing to
                    operating activities for all periods presented on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. The
                    amounts of these reclassifications were not material.

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SOURCE The Home Depot