DBRS Assigns Rating of “A,” Stable Trend, to The Home Depot, Inc.’s New Debt Issuance

DBRS Limited (DBRS) assigned a rating of “A” with a Stable trend to The Home Depot, Inc.’s (Home Depot or the Company) debt issuance of $1.0 billion 2.950% Notes due June 15, 2029, announced on June 3, 2019 (the Notes). The rating being assigned is based upon the rating on already-outstanding series of the Company’s Senior Unsecured Debt.

The Notes are unsecured obligations which rank equally with Home Depot’s existing and future unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Notes for general corporate purposes, which may include, but are not limited to refunding, repurchasing, retiring upon maturity or redeeming existing debt, working capital, capex, acquisitions or the purchase of common stock.

DBRS notes that, concurrent with the issuance of the Notes, the Company issued an additional $400 million 3.90% Notes due June 15, 2047, which are exchangeable with and part of a single series of senior debt securities with the $750 million principal amount of the 3.90% Notes due 2047 issued on June 5, 2017. The outstanding principal amount of the series of notes, after the issuance of the Notes, will be $1,150 million.

Home Depot’s ratings continue to be supported by its dominant market position, large scale, geographic diversification and free cash-generating capacity. The ratings also reflect the intense competition and cyclicality of the home improvement retail industry as well as risks related to possible future growth strategies.

Notes:
All figures are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted.

The principal methodologies are Rating Companies in the Merchandising Industry, DBRS Criteria: Commercial Paper Liquidity Support for Non-Bank Issuers and DBRS Criteria: Guarantees and Other Forms of Support, which can be found on dbrs.com under Methodologies & Criteria.

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