Essay On Home Depot Vs Lowes

Table 2 provides comparisons of HD and Lowes total debt (short term & long term) plus available cash. Lowes maintains less short term debt and available cash versus HD. Lowes cash reserves is about 10 times its short term debts whereas HD maintains approximately 2 times.

The Home Depot (Ticker: HD) is the world’s largest home-improvement retailer along with being an American Fortune 50 company. The company operates 2,259 retail building supply/home improvement “warehouse” type stores all across the United States, Canada and Mexico. The Home Depot has over 340,000 team members and is based in Atlanta, Georgia. The average store size is just over 100,000 square feet along with an additional 24,000 square feet set aside for seasonal gardening.

The Home Depot mission statement reads as follows: “The Home Depot is in the home improvement business and our goal is to provide the highest level of service, the broadest selection of products and the most competitive prices. We are a values-driven company and our eight values include the following: excellent customer service, taking care of our people, giving back, doing the “right” things, creating shareholder value, respect for all people, entrepreneurial spirit, and building strong relationships.”

The contemporary period is usually thought to have started around the 1940’s, after the end of World War Two. The experience of WWII changed the way that people around the globe live and think as many had begun to lead prosperous lives however the contemporary stories of the time would attempt to highlight the harsh realities that lied under the surface and were are still apparent in everyday life. An example of a contemporary author that writes about the luxuries of life while simultaneously relating his common experiences to the horrific tragedies of war was in Brian Turner’s “At Lowes Home Improvement Center.” Contemporary writing usually takes place in a realistic setting in the same time frame that the author is writing in such as in

Lowes is currently the second largest retailer by sales in the home improvement retail industry. It is also the 8th largest retailer in the United States and the 19th largest retailer in the world. The market cap for Lowes is currently $56.2 billion. Lowes’ stock price is currently (Dec 2) $63.83, just 31 cents off of its all time high from Nov 25. The company’s stock price has been volatile in nature since the turn of the decade in 2000. While it has been volatile, the general trend has been increasing steadily. Lowes’ stock did experience the drop in prices seen market wide during the recession in 2008 and 2009. Going from a high of $34.93 in February 2007, all the way down to $13.39 in March of 2009 (- 62%). Since September 2011 the stock price has shot up and experienced a 200% increase.

This ratio indicates a company’s liquidity. It depicts how many dollars of current assets exist for every dollar in current liabilities. The ratio is the higher, the better. Home Depot and Lowe’s has increasing current ratio while Home Depot has a slightly higher one.

This exercise is shockingly relevant to an opportunity that presented itself mid-course, literally in the middle of this course and in the middle of my orientation to both real estate and Shorewest. Shortly after the beginning of my Shorewest training in June, a trusted business partner encouraged me to visit his new Keller Williams branch. Since the visit, I have been comparing models, structures, development programs and cultures of both real estate companies. As the course progressed, the concepts mirrored my decision-making process, Keller Williams actually asked me to complete a leadership assessment as part of the screening process, which fit nicely in to week 4’s assignment. My comparison of the two

The purpose of this paper is to conduct a financial analysis of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. using financial ratios. The emphasis will be on examining ratios under the aforementioned categories and identifying trends in Lowe’s Companies, Inc. and comparing those findings with the industry averages. This paper will conclude with an assessment regarding the stability and future growth potential of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. in an ever changing economy.

Profitability and liquidity ratios are impressive and continue to reflect the company’s ability to succeed and compete with archrival and industry powerhouse Home Depot. The stock market ratios have fluctuated throughout the period analyzed, largely due in part to world events beyond management’s scope of control and the American public’s uncertainty in the market as a whole. All in all Lowe’s is forecasted to continue its growth and upward trend in all indicative areas and remain a power in the retail hardware, special orders and home improvement market, trespassing on territory once clearly dominated by Home Depot, the worlds largest hardware retailer. Lowe’s is a favorite amongst institutional investors as their holdings make up 80.80% of common stock issued.

Principal and interest obligations are known accounts which can be planned or predicted. Interest on the debt can be deducted on the company’s tax return, which lowers the actual cost of the loan of the company. Raising debt is less complicated because the company is not required to comply with state and federal laws and regulations. There are also some disadvantages of Lowe’s using debt. The debt must be at some point repaid. Interest is a fixed cost which raises the company’s break-even point. High interest cost during difficult financial period can increase the risk of insolvency. It might difficult for Lowe’s to grow because of high cost of servicing the debt. Debt instrument often contain restriction on the company’s activities, preventing management from pursuing alternative financing options. The larger a company’s debt-equity ratio, the more risky the company is considered by

Looking forward, Lowe’s plans include expansion, with more than 100 store openings in line until the year 2004. Although it was not explicitly stated that it will continue to expand until 2006, the analysts assumed the contrary, that is a continuous expansion in order to strategize and reach Home Depot’s level in terms of scale.

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. is the fourteenth largest retailer in America, and overall the world’s second largest home improvement retailer. They are the 108th ranked corporation on the Fortune 500 top corporations list. With an impressive in store stock of 40,000 home improvement items on hand, ranging from lumber to Home décor items, plus an additional 400,000 home improvement items available through a special order program. Lowe’s provides a onetime stop for all home improvement needs, for both the Do-It-Yourselfer, and the ever-expanding market of the Commercial Business Customer.

A strength in a SWOT analysis is something beneficial to the company while being an internal factor that they control. Two strengths of Bed Bath & Beyond are their registry service and personalized products. Bed Bath & Beyond offers their customers wedding, commitment ceremonies, baby, housewarming, anniversary, college, and birthday registry services. A registry is a listing of items, or a “wish-list”, of specific products that other people can purchase for you. An advantage of a registry is that it can be done electronically and is efficient for both the buyer and receiver. It is efficient because it is one central location people can go to purchase specific desired items. Bed Bath & Beyond’s most popular registry service is its wedding registry. It is regarded as the best registry by Kristi Kellog, in her article, “Where to Register: The 50 Best Wedding Registry Sites & Stores”. Kellog states, “When it comes to one-stop shopping convenience, few retailers can beat Bed Bath & Beyond. It’s the perfect place to scan all of your essentials, like housewares, linens, and appliances. And since they offer tons of different brands, you can select must-haves at a range of different price points. Plus, with free announcement cards to tell friends and family where you’ve registered, expert consultant to help you decide which items to pick, and a competition program that lets you purchase your remaining gifts at a discounted price after the big day, the retailer is a

This paper gives the reader an insight into how a manager in a competitive industry in a two-firm constant sum game makes decisions. The writer will be playing the role of a Home Depot, Inc. manager, and the major competitor is Lowe’s, Inc. Home Depot is the largest United States (U.S.) home-improvement retailer while Lowe’s is the second-largest U.S. home-improvement retailer. This is significant because what one company does affects the other. To compare the two companies their company profiles were reviewed. The latest news headlines on both companies were

The answer will be 1 .34 . this is a good sign that the company will be able to pay its obligations when they fall due . Based on both current ratios above , Sears company has a better current ratio at 1 .94 when compared with the current ratio of Walmart of only 1 .34 .B Sears Acid Test ratio Quick Assets 20201 1 .279354 Current Liabilities 15790 The quick assets are arrived at by adding the cash , cash equivalents ,receivables and marketable securities . The quick ratio is arrived at dividing the quick assets for the year 2007 of 20 ,201 . The quick ratio is 1 .28 times .Walmart Acid Test ratio Quick Assets 2423 0 .167566 Current Liabilities 14460 The quick ratio here is arrived at by dividing the quick assets of 2 ,423 for the year 2007 by the current liabilities amounting to 14 ,460 for the same year . The acid test ratio or quick ratio is .17 Based on the above data , Sears has a better quick ratio with its higher rate of 1 .28 as compared to the quick ratio or acid test ratio of Walmart at only .17 .C SOLVENCY LEVERAGE RATIOS Ability to pay long term obligations Sears 38700 The ratio of .85 . This shows that the company will be able to pay its obligations when the time of payment arrives .Walmart 45384 The Walmart will be able to pay its obligations when they