Home Depot posts another quarter of growth

ATLANTA — Stormy weather around the country had something to do with Home Depot's third quarter sales gain of 2.9%. So did strength in core categories. The world's largest home improvement retailer posted a 4.2% comp-store sales gain for the quarter ended Oct. 30. Total sales increased 2.9% to $17.326 billion. And even bigger growth came in the net earnings column, where Home Depot reported a 13.0% increase and net earnings of $934 million. “Our third quarter was driven by strength in our core categories and storm-related sales as well as strong operating performance,” said Frank Blake, chairman &