Home Depot 2nd-quarter profit rises 14 percent, tops estimate

Home Depot Inc. (HD) on Tuesday reported profit that increased by 14 percent in its fiscal second quarter, and topped analysts' expectations.

The Atlanta-based company said profit increased to $2.05 billion, or $1.52 per share, from $1.8 billion, or $1.24 per share, in the same quarter a year earlier. The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for profit of $1.44 per share.

The home-improvement retailer said revenue rose nearly 6 percent to $23.81 billion from $22.52 billion in the same quarter a year earlier, and beat Wall Street forecasts. Analysts expected $23.57 billion, according to Zacks.

Home Depot shares have risen $1.25, or 1.5 percent, to $83.59 since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has climbed nearly 7 percent. The stock has increased $8.45, or 11 percent, in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated automatically by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Full HD report: http://www.zacks.com/ap/HD

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Keywords:Home Depot,Earnings Report