Lowe's Unveils Growth Strategy and Reaffirms 2024 Guidance
MOORESVILLE, N.C. - Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) today highlighted its commitment to long-term growth and efficiency by sharing its strategic initiatives and financial goals at the 2024 Analyst and Investor Conference. The company addressed its Total Home Strategy for 2025, aimed at enhancing Pro Penetration, accelerating online sales, expanding home services, creating a loyalty ecosystem, and improving space efficiency.
In line with these initiatives, Lowe's announced the development of a new artificial intelligence framework to enhance customer experience and increase efficiency. This technology is expected to deliver innovative solutions in partnership with tech companies such as NVIDIA, OpenAI, and Palantir. The retailer is piloting AI solutions that will enable frontline employees to better serve customers and improve the in-store shopping experience.
Additionally, Lowe's is launching the first product marketplace in the U.S. home improvement sector, aiming to offer a wider online product range without the need to invest in new logistics centers or manage inventory. This move is designed to solidify Lowe's as a comprehensive destination for home improvement needs.
The company also announced plans to relaunch the Pro loyalty program as MyLowe's Pro Rewards in early 2025, which will offer enhanced benefits and savings to Pro customers. The new program will simplify the rewards system for customers by combining the DIY and Pro loyalty programs into a single ecosystem.
To better serve professional customers, Lowe's is launching Pro Extended Aisle, which will provide a seamless solution, including job site and roof delivery for large, custom Pro orders.
On the expansion front, Lowe's plans to open 10-15 new stores annually in rapidly growing U.S. markets over the coming years. The company also aims to expand its rural offering by 150 additional stores, bringing the total number of rural stores to approximately 500 and providing a wider range of products to meet the needs of customers in those areas.
A financial update was provided summarizing new Continuous Efficiency Improvement initiatives that are expected to yield approximately $1 billion in annual savings and detail scenario planning for the company’s performance in 2025.
Lowe's reaffirmed its outlook for the full year 2024, anticipating total sales between $83.0 and $83.5 billion, with comparable sales expected to decline by 3.0% to 3.5%. The adjusted operating margin is expected to be between 12.3% and 12.4%, while adjusted diluted earnings per share are projected to be between $11.80 and $11.90.