LOWES COMPANIES INC

Net Sales – Net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 decreased 2.0% to $20.9 billion. Comparable sales declined 1.7% consisting of a 3.8% decrease in comparable customer transactions, partially offset by a 2.1% increase in comparable average ticket.

During the first quarter of fiscal 2025, we experienced comparable sales increases in three of 14 product categories: Building Materials, Appliances, and Rough Plumbing. Growth in Building Materials and Rough Plumbing reflect strong demand with the Pro customer, demonstrating improvement from our investments in our Pro product and service offerings.

Gross Margin – For the first quarter of fiscal 2025, gross margin increased 19 basis points as a percentage of sales. The gross margin improvement for the quarter is primarily driven by ongoing productivity initiatives and improvement in shrink and credit revenue.

SG&A – For the first quarter of fiscal 2025, SG&A expense deleveraged 56 basis points as a percentage of sales compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2024 due primarily to lower sales volume, incremental wage actions and higher health care costs.

Depreciation and Amortization – Depreciation and amortization deleveraged 13 basis points for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 compared to the prior year.

Interest – Net – Interest expense for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 leveraged four basis points as a percentage of sales.

Income Tax Provision – Our effective income tax rates were 23.9% and 23.7% for the three months ended May 2, 2025 and May 3, 2024, respectively.