Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) stock rose 0.40% (As on February 20, 11:19:54 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company reported a fifth straight comparable sales decline, underscoring a drop in demand for house improvement due to high mortgage rates and a slowdown in construction. The demand dipped throughout the year as consumers returned to more typical spending patterns. He added that falling lumber prices and rising interest rates hurt the business. Home Depot now sees a chance to return to growth, as per the company. Home Depot has also felt a pullback in consumer spending, particularly on big-ticket items, as some families postpone discretionary purchases because of inflation, put off buying a new home because of higher interest rates or choose to spend on experiences rather than goods. Comparable sales fell 3.5% in the fiscal fourth quarter. That was slightly better than the 3.6% decline analysts had forecast before the report. The sales decline in the quarter is in line with a report last week from the Commerce Department, which showed a pronounced drop in retail sales at building materials stores.

HD in the fourth quarter of FY 23 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of $2.82, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share of $2.77, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly Refinitiv. The company had reported 3 percent decline in the adjusted revenue growth to $34.79 billion in the fourth quarter of FY 23, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $34.64 billion.

The home improvement retailer said it expects total sales to grow about 1% in fiscal 2024, which includes an additional week. That compares with a 1.6% increase expected by Wall Street, according to StreetAccount. However, Home Depot said it expects comparable sales, which take out the effect of store openings and closures, to decline about 1% during a period without the additional week. Home Depot anticipates it will open about a dozen new stores over the year. Fiscal 2024 gross margin is expected to be of approximately 33.9%, 53-week diluted earnings-per-share-percent growth to be of approximately 1.0% and operating margin to be of approximately 14.1%.

Additionally, the company has approved a 7.7% increase in its quarterly dividend to $2.25 per share, which equates to an annual dividend of $9.00 per share.