Lowe's reported a net income of $624 million in the first quarter ending May 2, a 15.6 percent increase compared with the same period one year ago.
First quarter sales increased 2.4 percent to $13.4 billion from $13.1 billion in the first quarter of 2013. Comparable sales increased 0.9 percent.
"We executed well during the quarter, despite an unexpectedly prolonged winter in many areas of the country," said Lowe's Chairman, President and CEO Robert Niblock. "While poor weather dampened traffic and negatively impacted performance of exterior categories, results for indoor categories were solid. We effectively aligned inventory, staffing and marketing resources by climatic zone to best serve customers' needs."
The company expects to open 10 home improvement and five hardware stores in fiscal year 2014.
