By Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) forecast annual profit below Wall Street expectations on Tuesday, hurt by higher supply chain costs amid weakening demand for home improvement products due to inflation. The No. 1 U.S. home improvement chain also missed fourth-quarter comparable sales estimates, sending its shares down 2.5% to $310 in premarket trading. The company said it expects earnings per share to decline in the mid-single digits percentage range for 2023, while analysts were expecting a 0.4% increase to $16.72, according to Refinitiv data. Comparable sales fell 0.3% in the fourth quarter compared with analysts’ average estimate of a 0.56% increase. The company said it was planning to invest an additional $1 billion in annualized compensation for its frontline, hourly associates, starting from the first quarter of 2023.
