Home Depot (HD), a home improvement retailer, will release its Q3 earnings results on Tuesday, November 18. HD stock has declined 12% over the past year, mainly because demand for large home projects has slowed and higher interest rates continue to weigh on housing activity. Store traffic and big-ticket spending have stayed soft, which has made analysts more cautious on near-term growth. Even so, analysts remain moderately bullish heading into the report, as many believe demand could recover once rates start easing and spending on home upgrades picks up again.
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Expectations from Home Depot
Wall Street analysts expect Home Depot to report earnings per share of $3.84 for Q3, up 1.6% from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, analysts project Q3 revenues to increase by 2.5% to $41.15 billion, according to the TipRanks Analyst Forecasts Page.
Beyond the headline numbers, investors will be watching for updates on store traffic, big-ticket sales, and demand for home renovation. Higher mortgage rates and tight housing supply have slowed spending on large upgrades in the past year, so any sign of better activity could help lift sentiment.
Guidance will likely be the biggest market mover. If Home Depot signals even a modest improvement in demand heading into 2025, the stock could react positively.
What This Analyst Is Saying About HD
Ahead of the Q3 print, Stifel analyst Andrew Carter cut his rating on Home Depot from Buy to Hold and reduced the price target from $440 to $370. He said the home improvement market remains soft, with sales growth near zero and likely to slow further as the company faces tougher comparisons with last year.
Carter lowered his forecasts for Home Depot and Lowe’s (LOW) for the second half of Fiscal 2025 and for the next two years. His estimates are now below most analysts’ forecasts and point to a slower recovery for the home improvement market.
Is Home Depot Stock a Good Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on HD stock based on 19 Buys and seven Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. The average HD price target of $440.42 per share implies 21.54% upside potential.
