Home Depot profit rises 21%, beats Street

Atlanta -- Home Depot reported Tuesday that it recorded higher-than-expected earnings in the third quarter, boosted by tighter cost controls.



The company’s net income rose to $834 million in the quarter ended Oct. 31, compared with net income of $689 million a year earlier.



Sales rose 1.4% to $16.60 billion, slightly above Wall Street expectations of $16.59 billion. Same-store sales at Home Depot's U.S. stores rose 1.5%. It was the chain’s fourth-straight quarterly gain after three years of declines



"As the business stabilizes, we continue to improve our operational performance," said chairman and CEO Frank Blake. "We are exercising good control over our expenses."