Lowe's To Open 135-145 Stores in 2008

Mooresville, N.C., Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse announced late Monday in its analyst meeting that it will open between 135 and 145 stores next year, with more than 80% of the stores in its larger format.

Lowe's, which will open its first stores in Canada later this year and enter Mexico in 2009, said that full-year profit could trail its prior forecast, citing sales that were trending below expectations.

"Even as we face easier prior-year sales comparisons as we progress through the year, many uncertainties remain, and it seems prudent to further temper our sales and earnings outlook," Robert A. Niblock, Lowe's chairman and CEO, said in a statement.