Lowe's key statistics and ratios
In fiscal 2026, Lowe's had an operating margin of 11.8% and a current ratio of 1.08. Each ratio below is calculated from the figures on its income statement, balance sheet and cash flow pages.
Financial ratios
| Fiscal year | 2010Jan 2010 | 2011Jan 2011 | 2012Feb 2012 | 2013Feb 2013 | 2014Jan 2014 | 2015Jan 2015 | 2016Jan 2016 | 2017Feb 2017 | 2018Feb 2018 | 2019Feb 2019 | 2020Jan 2020 | 2021Jan 2021 | 2022Jan 2022 | 2023Feb 2023 | 2024Feb 2024 | 2025Jan 2025 | 2026Jan 2026 | LTMJul 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | 34.9% | 35.1% | 34.6% | 34.3% | 34.6% | 34.8% | 34.8% | 33.3% | 32.7% | 32.1% | 31.8% | 33.0% | 33.3% | 33.2% | 33.4% | 33.3% | 33.5% | 33.1% |
| Operating margin | — | — | — | — | — | 8.5% | 8.4% | 9.0% | 9.6% | 5.6% | 8.8% | 10.8% | 12.6% | 10.5% | 13.4% | 12.5% | 11.8% | 11.4% |
| Net margin | 3.8% | 4.1% | 3.7% | 3.9% | 4.3% | 4.8% | 4.3% | 4.8% | 5.0% | 3.2% | 5.9% | 6.5% | 8.8% | 6.6% | 8.9% | 8.3% | 7.7% | 7.3% |
| Free-cash-flow margin | 4.8% | 5.2% | 5.0% | 5.0% | 5.9% | 7.2% | 6.1% | 6.8% | 5.7% | 7.0% | 3.9% | 10.3% | 8.6% | 7.0% | 7.2% | 9.2% | 8.9% | 7.7% |
| Return on equity | 9.4% | 10.8% | 10.6% | 12.9% | 17.8% | 24.7% | 28.9% | 43.9% | 56.0% | 48.6% | 152.5% | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Return on assets | 5.4% | 6.0% | 5.5% | 5.9% | 7.0% | 8.4% | 8.1% | 9.4% | 9.9% | 6.6% | 11.6% | 13.5% | 18.5% | 14.6% | 18.1% | 16.4% | 13.7% | 12.1% |
| Asset turnover | 1.43 | 1.46 | 1.49 | 1.53 | 1.63 | 1.74 | 1.88 | 1.98 | 1.97 | 2.04 | 1.95 | 2.08 | 2.11 | 2.20 | 2.02 | 1.97 | 1.77 | 1.64 |
| Current ratio | 1.32 | 1.40 | 1.28 | 1.27 | 1.16 | 1.05 | 1.01 | 1.00 | 1.06 | 0.98 | 1.01 | 1.19 | 1.02 | 1.10 | 1.23 | 1.09 | 1.08 | 1.10 |
| Debt to equity | 26.6% | 36.3% | 46.1% | 65.2% | 88.3% | 108.4% | 151.4% | 231.6% | 284.4% | 414.7% | 948.7% | >999% | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Effective tax rate | 36.9% | 37.7% | 36.7% | 37.6% | 37.8% | 36.9% | 42.4% | 40.5% | 37.2% | 31.8% | 23.9% | 24.6% | 24.7% | 28.8% | 24.1% | 24.0% | 23.9% | 24.2% |
| SG&A as % of revenue | 24.9% | 24.6% | 25.1% | 24.2% | 24.1% | 23.6% | 23.9% | 22.1% | 21.0% | 24.4% | 21.3% | 20.7% | 19.0% | 20.9% | 18.0% | 18.7% | 19.5% | 19.3% |
| Capital spending as % of revenue | 3.8% | 2.7% | 3.6% | 2.4% | 1.8% | 1.6% | 2.0% | 1.8% | 1.6% | 1.6% | 2.1% | 2.0% | 1.9% | 1.9% | 2.3% | 2.3% | 2.6% | 2.5% |
| Free cash flow ÷ net income | 126.5% | 125.5% | 137.0% | 130.2% | 138.7% | 150.1% | 140.9% | 144.0% | 114.4% | 216.9% | 65.7% | 158.7% | 97.8% | 105.0% | 79.9% | 110.7% | 115.0% | 105.4% |
| Dividends ÷ net income | 21.9% | 28.4% | 35.2% | 35.9% | 32.1% | 30.5% | 37.6% | 36.3% | 37.4% | 62.9% | 37.8% | 29.2% | 23.5% | 36.8% | 32.8% | 36.9% | 39.6% | 40.5% |
| Dividends and buybacks ÷ free cash flow | 39.7% | 126.4% | 142.2% | 199.8% | 140.1% | 116.7% | 136.1% | 106.0% | 113.6% | 89.5% | 210.9% | 72.1% | 181.5% | 244.0% | 140.4% | 86.0% | 37.2% | 45.1% |
| Quarter | 2025 Q3Nov 2024 | 2025 Q4Jan 2025 | 2026 Q1May 2025 | 2026 Q2Aug 2025 | 2026 Q3Oct 2025 | 2026 Q4Jan 2026 | 2027 Q1May 2026 | 2027 Q2Jul 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | 33.7% | 32.9% | 33.4% | 33.8% | 34.2% | 32.5% | 32.7% | 33.0% |
| Operating margin | 12.6% | 9.9% | 11.9% | 14.5% | 11.9% | 8.3% | 11.1% | 13.7% |
| Net margin | 8.4% | 6.1% | 7.8% | 10.0% | 7.8% | 4.9% | 7.1% | 9.2% |
| Free-cash-flow margin | 3.6% | 2.0% | 13.7% | 15.6% | 0.4% | 4.7% | 12.3% | 12.0% |
| Current ratio | 1.13 | 1.09 | 1.01 | 1.05 | 1.04 | 1.08 | 1.09 | 1.10 |
| SG&A as % of revenue | 19.0% | 20.6% | 19.3% | 17.4% | 20.0% | 21.4% | 19.2% | 17.2% |
Financial health
- Short-term assets cover short-term liabilities $23.3bn of assets due within a year against $21.1bn of liabilities due within a year.
- Short-term assets cover long-term liabilities $23.3bn short-term assets against $42.2bn of longer-dated liabilities.
- More cash than debt $3.2bn of cash against $35.2bn of debt.
- Debt below 40% of shareholders' equity Equity or debt not reported. Not assessable.
- Debt burden no higher than five years ago Five-year comparison not available. Not assessable.
- A year's operating cash flow covers at least 20% of debt $9.3bn of operating cash flow against $35.2bn of debt.
- Operating profit covers interest at least five times over Interest not separately reported. Not assessable.
Moat
Strong moat
How hard Lowe's's competitive advantage looks for rivals to wear away, judged from 10 years of its own filings: returns on capital, pricing power, profit durability, cash conversion and discipline.
- Returns on capital 20 / 20
Net income has been a median 12.7% of total assets over 10 years.
- Pricing power 12 / 20
Gross margin has been a median 33.1%, moving by 0.6 percentage points (standard deviation) across 10 years.
- Durability 10 / 20
Operating margin has been a median 11.0%; its worst year was 5.8%.
- Cash conversion 14 / 20
Free cash flow was positive in 10 of 10 years, at a median 7.5% of revenue.
- Discipline 20 / 20
The diluted share count fell 23.2% over five years; stock-based pay has been a median 0.2% of revenue.
AI disruption exposure: Medium. In this industry, AI could change how the product is made or sold, without replacing the core asset. The score above includes a 5-point deduction for that exposure (76 before it).
Compare with peers
Head to head: HD vs LOWFND vs LOW
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