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

DBRS Limited (DBRS Morningstar) assigned a rating of “A” with a Stable trend to The Home Depot, Inc.’s (Home Depot or the Company) debt issuance of $1,250 million 3.125% Notes due December 15, 2049, announced on January 6, 2020 (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 that 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, including repurchases of shares of the Company’s common stock, subject to market conditions and other business considerations.

DBRS Morningstar notes that, concurrent with the issuance of the Notes, the Company issued an additional $750 million 2.950% Notes due June 15, 2029, which are exchangeable with, and part of, a single series of senior debt securities with the $1.0 billion principal amount of the 2.950% Notes due 2029 issued on June 17, 2019. The outstanding principal amount of the series of notes, after the issuance of the Notes, will be $1,750 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.

For more information on this credit or on this industry, visit www.dbrs.com or contact us at info@dbrs.com.

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