Home Depot rides America’s housing affordability problem to sales increase on home DIY projects

Home Depot's sales increased during the second quarter as homeowners turned to smaller projects during the summer, while the U.S. housing market remained in a slump. The company's revenue reached $47.86 billion, surpassing the expected $47.24 billion. Worldwide, sales at stores open for at least a year grew by 1.7%, and in the U.S., comparable store sales rose 1.3%.

CFO Richard McPhail noted that customers engaged in a variety of smaller projects. Customer transactions fell by 1%, but shoppers spent an average of $92.50 per transaction, up from $90.01 the previous year. Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, commented on the positive trend, saying that the number of smaller projects increased by 1.5% compared to the previous year.

However, bigger-ticket projects declined by 2.1%. The rising costs of financing, especially for home equity loans, are hindering larger projects. Despite the challenges, Home Depot maintained its sales growth guidance for fiscal 2026, between 2.5% and 4.5%, and comparable sales will either remain flat or increase by 2%.