“We expect total sales growth to outpace sales comp, with sales growth of approximately positive 2.8% and comp sales growth of approximately positive 1%, compared to fiscal 2024.”

In context

“months, return on invested capital was 27.2%, down from 31.9% in 2024. Now I will comment on our outlook for fiscal 2025. As you heard from Ted, our performance during the second quarter was in line with our expectations. The customer engagement we saw in 2024 continued into 2025, with notable improvements in underlying demand during the second quarter. As we look to the remainder of the year, we are confident in our ability to manage through the macroeconomic environment as it stands today. As a result, we are reaffirming our fiscal 2025 guidance. As a reminder, our guidance does not include any assumptions on impacts from the pending GMS acquisition, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, changes in the interest rate environment, or a recovery in demand for larger remodeling projects. We expect total sales growth to outpace sales comp, with sales growth of approximately positive 2.8% and comp sales growth of approximately positive 1%, compared to fiscal 2024. Our gross margin is expected to be approximately 33.4%, essentially flat compared to fiscal 2024. Further, we expect an operating margin of approximately 13% and an adjusted operating margin of approximately 13.4%. Our effective tax rate is targeted at approximately 24.5%. We expect net interest expense of approximately $2.2 billion. We expect our diluted earnings per share to decline approximately 3% compared to fiscal 2024 when comparing the fifty-two weeks in fiscal 2025 to the fifty-three weeks in fiscal 2024. And we expect our adjusted diluted earnings per share to decline approximately 2% compared to fiscal 2024. On a fifty-two-week basis, adjusted diluted earnings per share would be essentially flat compared to fiscal 2024. We plan to continue investing in our business with capital”