(Reuters) - Home Depot posted a bigger-than-expected drop in quarterly same-store sales on Tuesday as cautious homeowners shelled out less for big-ticket purchases while focusing on small-scale repairs.
Customers are cutting back spending on discretionary categories and have put pricey renovations on hold as they adjust to higher borrowing costs and elevated inflation.
CEO Ted Decker said the quarter was impacted by a delayed start to spring and continued softness in certain larger discretionary projects.
The company's comparable sales fell for the sixth straight quarter to 2.8% in the first quarter, compared with analysts' estimates of a 2.09% drop, according to LSEG data.
Transactions fell 1%, after declining 1.7% in the fourth quarter and 4.8% drop last year.
Shares of Home Depot were down about 1% in volatile premarket trading.
