Home Depot Grows Sales in Weak Housing Market

Home Depot (HD) reported fiscal second-quarter 2026 net sales of $47.86 billion for the three months ended Aug. 2, up 5.7% from a year earlier. GAAP net income was $4.77 billion, or $4.79 per share, and adjusted earnings per share came in at $4.92. These results exceeded Wall Street expectations on both revenue and earnings, underscoring solid performance in a challenging backdrop for housing-related spending.

Comparable sales for the quarter rose 1.7% overall, with U.S. comparable sales up 1.3%. The company also recorded a higher comparable average ticket of $92.50, while customer transactions declined 1%. This combination indicates that shoppers spent more per visit even as overall visit counts edged lower.

News coverage and company commentary linked the quarterly beat to spending focused on smaller renovation and repair projects rather than large-scale undertakings. Resilient demand from professional customers played an important role in offsetting weaker activity in bigger-ticket consumer projects. This mix helped support comparable sales growth despite a softer environment for major home-improvement jobs.

The pattern suggests that essential maintenance and incremental upgrades continue to attract spending even when consumers are cautious about committing to larger discretionary projects. By capturing this demand, Home Depot (HD) was able to grow sales and maintain profitability even as broader housing activity remained subdued.

Despite the upside in the second quarter, Home Depot reaffirmed its full fiscal-year 2026 outlook. Management continues to project total sales growth of 2.5% to 4.5% for the year. The company also maintained its expectation that comparable sales will range from flat to up 2% over the same period.

By keeping its guidance unchanged, Home Depot signals an expectation of continued but measured growth rather than a sharp acceleration. The reaffirmed outlook reflects confidence in the business model while acknowledging that the operating environment remains constrained by broader housing dynamics.

The broader U.S. housing market showed ongoing signs of softness as the second half of 2026 began. The National Association of REALTORS reported that pending home sales fell 2.3% month over month in July 2026 to an index level of 71.2. Pending sales were down 2.2% year over year and stood at their lowest level since January 2026.

Declines in pending home sales occurred in all four U.S. regions, pointing to widespread weakness in contract activity. Because pending sales often precede completed transactions and moving-related projects, this trend highlights a headwind for categories tied to home turnover and large renovations, even as Home Depot manages to grow within this environment.