Lowe's CEO Marvin Ellison just called this the worst housing market he has seen since the financial crisis.
The chain grew anyway.
Lowe's reported four straight quarters of positive same-store sales Wednesday. It beat Wall Street on earnings and revenue.
It also held its full-year outlook, though the stock barely budged.
Lowe's posted adjusted earnings of $3.03 a share against $2.97 expected.
Revenue also beat, coming in at $23.08 billion against $22.97 billion, with sales up about 10% year over year.
Comp sales also rose 0.6%, with online sales the standout at 15.5%.
Net income came in at $1.63 billion. That is basically flat against $1.64 billion a year ago.
The full-year call is also unchanged at $92 billion to $94 billion in sales, with adjusted earnings set at $12.25 to $12.75 a share.
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About 60% to 65% of Lowe's sales come from do-it-yourself shoppers. That group is under pressure.
High mortgage rates, costly homes, and low home sales have frozen the kind of project spending that pays Lowe's bills.
What is working: appliances, home services, and sales to the pros.
Those buyers are still busy with repair and fix-up jobs.
Online is doing heavy lifting too. It hit 15.5% growth in Q1 after 10.5% in Q4, with both quarters posting double-digit gains.
Ellison pointed to the same K-shaped split showing up across retail this earnings season.
High earners are still spending while low earners pull back, and Lowe's core shopper is largely the former.
That group is mostly safe from gas prices, even if their mood is slipping.
Asked what would unlock the home fix-up market, Ellison was direct.
He wants rates lower.
His specific number is a sustained sub-6% setup for both the 30-year fixed mortgage and short-term rates.
Until then, he expects the broader housing market to stay flat in 2026.
That is not a guess about how shoppers feel. It is a request for a Fed move.
Home Depot beat its own quarter earlier this week. It also held its full-year outlook.
The big chain said its core shopper still feels solid. It has even applied for tariff refunds.
Lowe's would not say if it has done the same. Only that it is "monitoring" the picture.
Both chains lean on the pro buyer when do-it-yourself slows. That mix is paying off again.
Online is the other shared lever, with each chain building out same-day pickup and same-day delivery.
In February, Lowe's cut about 600 corporate and support roles. It also leaned into store staff.
Both chains are still finding ways to grow in a tough housing market.
For Lowe's, the next move sits with the Fed.
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