Home Depot raises guidance for second time this year

Home Depot upped its sales and profits guidance for a second time this year on Tuesday thanks to a robust US housing market that has led many Americans to pour money back into their homes.

The biggest DIY chain in the world now expects earnings for its current trading year to come in at roughly $9.75 per share, up from the $9.42 it had projected three months ago.

Management also stuck to a previous forecast for like-for-like sales growth of 5.5% year-on-year, up from the 5.2% originally projected, which it expected would help lift overall sales growth to 7.2%.

Chairman and chief executive Craig Menear, said: "We believe this is a testament to the overall strength of demand in the home improvement market."

For the quarter, Home Depot saw sales rise 5.1% to $26.3bn, topping Wall Street expectations of $26.2bn, thanks, in part, to average transaction value increasing 3.6% to $65.11.

Net income jumped almost a third to $2.8bn, or $2.51 per share, thanks to a lower corporate tax rate.

As of 1650 GMT, Home Depot shares had slipped 1.78% to $176.36 each.