Home Depot Sales Rise on Smaller Projects Amid Slumping Housing Market

Home Depot's sales improved in its second quarter as customers focused on smaller projects during the summer months, despite the U.S. housing sector remaining in a slump.

The home improvement retailer reported revenue of $47.86 billion, edging out the expected $47.24 billion from Wall Street, according to FactSet.

Comparable store sales rose 1.3% in the U.S., while globally they increased by 1.7%. Customer transactions slipped 1%, but the average spend per transaction increased to $92.50 from $90.01 last year.

'We saw broad-based demand across the business as customers continued to engage in smaller projects,' said Chief Financial Officer Richard McPhail.

Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, noted a potential weakness in bigger-ticket projects, which fell by 2.1% over last year due to concerns around financing and previous lack of moving activity.