Home Depot 2Q profit climbs 14 percent

ATLANTA (AP) — 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