Free Home Depot Assignment Essay Example

Who is their COB and CEO?

Francis S. Blake is both the Chairman of the Board (COB) and the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Home Depot, a position he has held since January 2007. Before joining Home Depot, Blake served in various positions at General Electric Company (p. 52).

What is the five-year sales trend? The five-year net earnings trend?

Home Depot experienced a steady increase in sales for the last five years. Net sales increased from $66,176 Million in 2009 to $67,997 Million in 2010. In 2011, net sales rose to $70,395 Million then to $74,754 Million in 2012. In 2013, it increased to $78,812 Million.
Net earnings also increased during the five-year period from 2009 to 2013. It increased from $2,620 Million in 2009 to $3,338 in 2010 and then to $3,883 Million in 2011. In 2012 and 2013, the figure increased to $4,535 Million and $5,385 Million respectively (p. F-1).

What state is the company incorporated in? Where is the corporate headquarters located?

The company was incorporated in Delaware in 1978. The corporate headquarters is 2455 Paces Ferry Road, N.W., Atlanta, Georgia 30339 (Form 10-K, p. 1).
How many stores does Home Depot have? In what countries are they located? What are the comparable stores year-over-year sales increase/decrease?
Home Depot had 2,263 stores operating as of the end of fiscal year 2013. They are located throughout United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, Canada, and Mexico. (p.1)
The overall comparable stores sales increased by 6.8% in 2013. In the United States alone, it rose by 7.5% (p.17).

What is the purpose of “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”?

Its purpose is to provide a narrative and more detailed explanation of the financial statements. It focuses on critical areas such as liquidity, capital resources, trading activities and transactions with related parties. It also provides a discussion of the management’s disclosure about market risk as well as a discussion of critical accounting policies. It also gives a description of significant occurrences and economic conditions together with their effects on the operations of the company. Its aim is to enhance understanding of financial statements by the users (p 17 – 27).
Who are their auditors? Did they give an unqualified opinion (“clean opinion”) on the financial statements? What is the purpose of audit of by a CPA firm?
KPMG LLP audited Home Depot, and they issued an unqualified opinion (p. 27).
The purpose of an audit is to provide a reasonable assurance that the company’s financial statements reflect it a true and fair view of its financial position and results of operations.

How many financial statements are required? Which ones are they? Which one do you think is the most important? Why?

There are five financial statements required. These include the balance sheet, the statement of earnings, the statement of comprehensive income, the statement of stockholders’ equity, and the statement of cash flows. I believe they are all equally important as they are interrelated. It is not possible to assess the financial strength of the company based on a single statement.

What is the fiscal year end? Why that year end date?

The fiscal year end of Home Depot was on February 2, 2014 (p. 29).
It does not end on December 31 since the business cycle is not synchronized with the calendar year. The seasonality of the business implies that sales-expense ratio does not follow the calendar year that runs from January to December.

What is the purpose of the “Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements”? Specifically, what is the purpose of Note 1?

It provides more details regarding the line items presented in the financial statements such as their breakdowns and how they arrive at those amounts.
For instance, Note 1, SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES, provides information regarding the company’s consolidation, fiscal year. In addition, it explains the use of estimates, fair value measurements, income taxes, depreciation, among others.

How many product categories does Home Depot have? Which one is the largest?

Home Depot has 15 major product categories. The Kitchen category is the largest in terms of Net Sales. It accounts for 10.1% of the overall net sales of the company (p. 39)

How many members are on the BOD? How many committees are there? What is the purpose of the audit committee?

The Board of Directors has 11 members. The company's board has four key committees. The committees are Audit, Finance, Leadership Development & Compensation, and Nominating & Corporate Governance (p. F-1).
The main purpose of the audit committee is to ensure/retains the independence of the external auditor is maintained (p. 27). It also advises the executive directors on matters relating to financial reporting.

When and where is the annual stockholders’ meeting? What is the purpose of the annual meeting?

The annual meeting was held in Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, Georgia on May 22, 2014 at 9:00am, Eastern Time. The AGM is organized to allow the directors to present the annual report to the company's members/shareholders.
What stock exchange are they listed under? What is their trading symbol? What is their stock price range for the year?
The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and its trading symbol is “HD.” In 2013, the stock price reached a high of $82.34 in the fourth quarter, up from $74.00 in the first quarter (p. 14). The lowest was $75.37 in the fourth quarter, up from $63.92 in the first quarter (p. 14).

Works cited

Home Depot 2013 Annual Report and Form-10-K. Phx.corporate-ir.net,. N.p., 2015. Web. 25 Feb. 2015.