...NEW YORK (Standard & Poor's) Feb. 24, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today said its ratings on Atlanta-based home improvement retailer Home Depot Inc. are unaffected by the company's strong fourth-quarter results and guidance for fiscal 2015. The fourth-quarter results exceed our expectations and underpin our view of the continued improvement in the U.S. housing market following the Great Recession and good execution of its operating strategies including in-store and online initiatives. Same-store comparisons in the quarter were up nearly 8%. We forecast positive performance trends in 2015 with mid-single-digit same-store growth and upside profit margin momentum. This supports our assessment of its business risk profile as "strong". Home Depot's debt to EBITDA target of 2x limits rating upside. The company recently renewed its share authorization program, which entails about $18 billion of stock buybacks over the next few years. We think it will fund share repurchases with a combination...
