The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) Q1 2024 Earnings Conference Call May 14, 2024 9:00 AM ET

Company Participants

Isabel Janci – Vice President of Investor Relations and Treasurer
Ted Decker – Chair, President and CEO
Ann-Marie Campbell – Senior Executive Vice President
Billy Bastek – Executive Vice President, Merchandising
Richard McPhail – Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Chip Devine – Senior Vice President-Outside Sales

Conference Call Participants

Chris Horvers – JPMorgan
Simeon Gutman – Morgan Stanley
Zach Fadem – Wells Fargo
Scot Ciccarelli – Truist
Michael Lasser – UBS
Chuck Grom – Gordon Haskett
Steven Zaccone – Citi
Brian Nagel – Oppenheimer
Steven Forbes – Guggenheim

Operator

Greetings, and welcome to the Home Depot First Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. A brief question-and-answer session will follow the formal presentation. [Operator Instructions] As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.

It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Isabel Janci. Please go ahead.

Isabel Janci

Thank you, Christine, and good morning, everyone. Welcome to Home Depot's first quarter 2024 earnings call. Joining us on our call today are Ted Decker, Chair, President and CEO; Ann-Marie Campbell, Senior Executive Vice President; Billy Bastek, Executive Vice President of Merchandising; and Richard McPhail, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Following our prepared remarks, the call will be open for questions. Questions will be limited to analysts and investors and as a reminder please limit yourself to one question with one follow up. If we are unable to get to your question during the call, please call our Investor Relations department at 770-384-2387.

Before I turn the call over to Ted, let me remind you that today's press release and the presentations made by our executives include forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations and projections. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to the factors identified in the release and in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Today's presentation will also include certain non-GAAP measures. Reconciliation of these measures is provided on our website.

Now, let me turn the call over to Ted.

Ted Decker

Thank you, Isabel, and good morning everyone. Sales for the first quarter were $36.4 billion, down 2.3% from the same period last year. Comp sales declined 2.8% from the same period last year and our U.S. stores had negative comps of 3.2%. Diluted earnings per share were $3.63 in the first quarter compared to $3.82 in the first quarter last year. The team executed a high level in the quarter, continued to grow market share. While the quarter was impacted by a delayed start to spring and continued softness in certain larger discretionary projects, we feel great about our store readiness, product assortment and associate engagement. Our associates are energized and ready to serve our customers as spring breaks across the country. As you will hear from Billy, where weather was favorable, we saw good customer engagement and strength in outdoor projects.