Figures as of the Nov 13, 2026 close. Updated after each trading day. Not a recommendation or a forecast.
From Sep 22, 1981 to the Nov 13, 2026 close, $1,000 in Home Depot (HD) became $21,277,845 and $1,000 in Lowe's (LOW) became $678,656, with dividends reinvested.
From Sep 22, 1981 to Nov 13, 2026, Home Depot grew 24.7% a year and Lowe's grew 15.5%. The higher rate, Home Depot's, came with wider daily swings. Volatility was 35.9% for Home Depot and 35.3% for Lowe's. The Sharpe ratio is the yearly return above a fixed 5% risk-free rate, per unit of volatility.
Sharpe ratios were 0.55 for Home Depot and 0.30 for Lowe's. Over the same dates, the price record shows deepest falls of 70.4% for Home Depot and 62.3% for Lowe's. From Feb 1, 1993 to Nov 13, 2026, betas to the S&P 500 were 1.01 for Home Depot and 1.03 for Lowe's.
The $1,000 in Home Depot and the $1,000 in Lowe's swapped places once, at the end of Oct 1981. Since then, the $1,000 in Home Depot has been worth more at every month end.
At the end of Oct 1992, $1,000 had become $326,907 in Home Depot and $2,328 in Lowe's. In relative terms, that was the widest gap between them at any month end. The $1,000 in Home Depot first doubled to $2,000 at a month end in Mar 1982. The $1,000 in Lowe's did so in Mar 1986.
The $1,000 in Home Depot first stood at $10,000,000 or more at a month end in Aug 2018. The $1,000 in Lowe's had not reached $10,000,000 by Nov 2026.
Every row ends at the Nov 13, 2026 close. The "a year" columns give the yearly rate from each start date. The yearly rates were furthest apart over the full span since Sep 1981. Over that span, Home Depot grew 24.7% a year and Lowe's grew 15.5%.
The rates were closest over the last 5 years: 1.2% for Home Depot and 1.3% for Lowe's.
Both had a lower rate over the last year than their 10-year rate. For Home Depot it was −2.6% against 13.3%, and for Lowe's 0.5% against 14.7%. $1,000 in Home Depot ended below $1,000 over the last year ($974). $1,000 in Lowe's ended within 1% of where it started over the last year ($1,005).
| Period | $1,000 in Home Depot | $1,000 in Lowe's | Home Depot a year | Lowe's a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since both startedfrom Sep 22, 1981 | $21,277,845 | $678,656 | 24.7% | 15.5% |
| Last 20 yearsfrom Nov 13, 2006 | $15,951 | $11,213 | 14.8% | 12.8% |
| Last 10 yearsfrom Nov 14, 2016 | $3,486 | $3,930 | 13.3% | 14.7% |
| Last 5 yearsfrom Nov 12, 2021 | $1,062 | $1,065 | 1.2% | 1.3% |
| Last yearfrom Nov 13, 2025 | $974 | $1,005 | −2.6% | 0.5% |
At the Nov 13, 2026 close, Home Depot was 14.9% below its Nov 2024 month-end high. At the same close, Lowe's was 13.2% below its Jan 2026 month-end high. On daily closes, Home Depot's deepest fall was 70.4% from Dec 31, 1999 to Mar 6, 2009. Lowe's' deepest fall was 62.3% from Jul 2, 1990 to Nov 21, 1990.
Home Depot closed back at its old high on Aug 14, 2012, 3 years and 5 months after the low. Lowe's closed back at its old high on Aug 4, 1992, 1 year and 8 months after the low. Home Depot was 20% or more below its high at 214 of 543 month ends.
Lowe's was 20% or more below its high at 189.
The S&P 500's dot-com fall ran from its Mar 24, 2000 high to its Oct 9, 2002 low. Over those dates, Home Depot fell 62.8% while Lowe's rose 40.4%. The S&P 500's 2008 fall ran from its Oct 9, 2007 high to its Mar 9, 2009 low. Over those dates, Home Depot fell 43.6% and Lowe's 51.7%.
The S&P 500's COVID fall ran from its Feb 19, 2020 high to its Mar 23, 2020 low. Over those dates, Home Depot fell 32.9% and Lowe's 45.1%. The S&P 500's 2022 fall ran from its Jan 3, 2022 high to its Oct 12, 2022 low. Over those dates, Home Depot fell 30.0% and Lowe's 23.1%.
The bars cover 44 full calendar years, 1982 to 2025. Home Depot rose in 33 of them and Lowe's in 32. Home Depot's yearly change was higher in 23 years and Lowe's' in 21. Both rose in 27 and both fell in 6. In 11 years, one rose while the other fell.
Home Depot's lowest year was 2002 (−52.6%) and Lowe's' was 1987 (−37.0%). Both had their highest year in 1982: Home Depot +439.2%, Lowe's +171.6%. The widest one-year gap between Home Depot and Lowe's came in 1982, one of the years above. In 2025, the latest full year, Home Depot fell 9.3% and Lowe's fell 0.3%.
These counts cover 120 full months, Nov 2016 to Oct 2026. Home Depot rose in 75 of them and Lowe's in 66. Both rose in 57, both fell in 36, and in 27 one rose while the other fell. Home Depot's largest monthly fall was −15.1% in Oct 2018, and Lowe's' −19.3% in Mar 2020.
Home Depot's largest monthly rise was +18.9% in Mar 2021, and Lowe's' +24.4% in May 2020. Home Depot's longest run of falling months was 3, ending in Jul 2017. Lowe's' longest run of falling months was 6, ending in Jun 2022.
The latest cell is a part month, from the Oct 30, 2026 close to the Nov 13, 2026 close. Over those days, Home Depot changed +5.9% and Lowe's +8.9%.
| J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | +8.9 | +1.6 | −13.0 | −0.0 | −3.5 | +12.0 | −5.9 | −1.2 | −12.6 | +15.7 | +5.9 | |
| 2025 | +5.9 | −3.7 | −7.0 | −1.6 | +2.2 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +10.7 | +0.2 | −6.3 | −6.0 | −3.0 |
| 2024 | +1.8 | +7.8 | +1.4 | −12.9 | +0.9 | +2.8 | +6.9 | +0.7 | +10.0 | −2.8 | +9.6 | −9.4 |
| 2023 | +2.6 | −8.5 | +0.2 | +1.8 | −5.0 | +9.6 | +7.5 | −0.4 | −8.5 | −5.8 | +10.9 | +10.5 |
| 2022 | −11.6 | −13.9 | −4.7 | +0.4 | +0.8 | −8.8 | +9.7 | −3.5 | −4.3 | +7.3 | +10.1 | −2.5 |
| 2021 | +2.0 | −4.6 | +18.9 | +6.0 | −1.5 | +0.5 | +2.9 | −0.6 | +1.1 | +13.2 | +7.8 | +4.0 |
| 2020 | +4.5 | −4.5 | −13.7 | +17.7 | +13.0 | +1.4 | +6.0 | +7.4 | −2.1 | −4.0 | +4.0 | −3.7 |
| 2019 | +6.8 | +0.9 | +4.4 | +6.2 | −6.8 | +10.3 | +2.8 | +6.7 | +2.4 | +1.1 | −6.0 | −0.3 |
| 2018 | +6.0 | −9.3 | −1.7 | +3.7 | +1.5 | +4.6 | +1.2 | +2.2 | +3.2 | −15.1 | +3.1 | −4.7 |
| 2017 | +2.6 | +5.3 | +1.9 | +6.3 | −1.1 | −0.1 | −2.5 | +0.8 | +9.1 | +1.4 | +9.0 | +5.4 |
| J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | +11.2 | −0.9 | −10.7 | +1.5 | −10.2 | +2.9 | −5.2 | −1.5 | −10.0 | +14.2 | +8.9 | |
| 2025 | +5.8 | −4.4 | −6.2 | −3.6 | +1.0 | −1.7 | +1.3 | +15.4 | −2.6 | −4.8 | +1.8 | −0.5 |
| 2024 | −3.9 | +13.1 | +5.8 | −10.1 | −2.9 | −0.4 | +11.9 | +1.2 | +9.0 | −2.9 | +4.0 | −9.4 |
| 2023 | +5.1 | −1.2 | −2.8 | +4.5 | −3.2 | +12.2 | +4.3 | −1.6 | −9.8 | −7.8 | +4.3 | +11.9 |
| 2022 | −7.9 | −6.9 | −8.5 | −1.8 | −1.2 | −10.6 | +10.3 | +1.4 | −3.3 | +4.4 | +9.0 | −6.3 |
| 2021 | +4.3 | −4.3 | +19.0 | +3.5 | −0.7 | −0.4 | −0.2 | +5.8 | −0.5 | +15.7 | +4.6 | +5.7 |
| 2020 | −2.5 | −8.3 | −19.3 | +22.4 | +24.4 | +3.7 | +10.6 | +10.6 | +0.7 | −4.4 | −1.4 | +3.0 |
| 2019 | +4.6 | +9.3 | +4.2 | +3.8 | −17.6 | +8.2 | +1.0 | +10.7 | −2.0 | +2.0 | +5.1 | +2.1 |
| 2018 | +13.1 | −14.5 | −2.1 | −5.6 | +15.3 | +0.6 | +4.4 | +9.5 | +5.6 | −16.7 | −0.9 | −2.1 |
| 2017 | +3.3 | +1.8 | +10.5 | +3.7 | −7.2 | −1.6 | +0.4 | −4.5 | +8.2 | +0.5 | +4.3 | +11.5 |
The rolling 1-year return is the change over the 12 months to each month end. From Sep 1982 to Nov 2026, Home Depot's rolling 1-year return ran from −58.0% (12 months to Jan 2003) to +484.9% (to Feb 1983). Over the same months, Lowe's' ran from −47.4% (12 months to Mar 1984) to +176.5% (to Nov 1982).
Home Depot's 12-month change was below zero at 138 of those 531 month ends, and Lowe's' at 155. Home Depot's 12-month change was the higher one at 306 month ends and Lowe's' at 224, and the two were level at 1.
These measures cover Sep 22, 1981 to Nov 13, 2026. Over those dates, volatility was 35.9% for Home Depot and 35.3% for Lowe's. The Sortino ratio counts only falling days as risk. Against the same 5% rate, Sortino ratios were 0.83 for Home Depot and 0.43 for Lowe's. The Calmar ratio is the yearly return divided by the deepest fall.
Calmar ratios were 0.35 for Home Depot and 0.25 for Lowe's.
Beta shows how much Home Depot and Lowe's tended to move on the days the S&P 500 (SPY) moved. A beta of 1 means moving by the same amount as the index. From Feb 1, 1993 to Nov 13, 2026, Home Depot's beta was 1.01 and Lowe's' 1.03.
By that measure, both tended to move about as much as the index. The correlation of Home Depot's and Lowe's' daily moves was 0.70, a partial link. A correlation of 1 would mean they always moved together, 0 no link and −1 always opposite.
| Measure | Home Depot | Lowe's |
|---|---|---|
| Volatility, a year | 35.9% | 35.3% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.55 | 0.30 |
| Sortino ratio | 0.83 | 0.43 |
| Calmar ratio | 0.35 | 0.25 |
| Deepest fall | 70.4% | 62.3% |
| Beta to the S&P 500from Feb 1, 1993 | 1.01 | 1.03 |
| Upside capturemonths from Dec 2016 | 98% | 112% |
| Downside capturemonths from Dec 2016 | 95% | 109% |
| Biggest one-day rise | +32.93%Oct 20, 1981 | +18.44%Jan 3, 2001 |
| Biggest one-day fall | −28.74%Oct 12, 2000 | −41.30%Apr 29, 1983 |
| Price against its 50-day average | +11.7% | +14.4% |
| Price against its 200-day average | +5.9% | +3.0% |
| Correlation of daily movesfrom Feb 1, 1993 | 0.70 | |
What Home Depot and Lowe's do, from each company's latest annual report filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The Home Depot, Inc. is a home improvement retailer. It sells home improvement products, building materials, lawn and garden products, décor products and facilities MRO products in stores and online. MRO stands for maintenance, repair and operations. It also provides services, including home improvement installation and tool and equipment rental.
The filing combines its U.S., Canada and Mexico retail operations into one reportable segment, the Primary segment. It reports SRS, a residential specialty trade distributor acquired in June 2024, outside that segment. The company is a Delaware corporation incorporated in 1978. Its corporate headquarters is in Atlanta, Georgia.
Its fiscal year ends on the Sunday nearest January 31, so fiscal 2025 ended on February 1, 2026.
Source: 10-K (fiscal 2025, ended February 1, 2026), filed Mar 18, 2026 (SEC EDGAR)
Lowe's Companies, Inc. is a home improvement retailer. As of January 30, 2026, it operated 1,759 home improvement stores and outlets in the United States. It also operated over 540 branch locations in the United States and Canada, including those of Foundation Building Materials and Artisan Design Group, acquired during fiscal 2025. The company reports one segment, Retail Home Improvement.
Lowe's was founded in 1921 with the opening of its first hardware store in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. It was incorporated in North Carolina in 1952 and has been publicly held since 1961. Its principal executive offices are in Mooresville, North Carolina. Its fiscal year ends on the Friday nearest the end of January.
Source: 10-K (fiscal 2025, ended January 30, 2026), filed Mar 23, 2026 (SEC EDGAR)
It depends on the period. Home Depot had the higher total return over the full span since Sep 1981 and the last 20 years. Lowe's had the higher total return over the last 10 and 5 years and the last year. From Sep 22, 1981 to the Nov 13, 2026 close, Home Depot returned +2,127,684% in total and Lowe's +67,766%.
Both include reinvested dividends, before taxes and fees. Over the last 10 years, Home Depot returned +249% and Lowe's +293%. Over the last 5 years, Home Depot returned +6.2% and Lowe's +6.5%. Over the last year, Home Depot returned −2.6% and Lowe's +0.5%. None of these Home Depot and Lowe's figures is a forecast.
SmartFin does not say which to buy. This page reports what Home Depot and Lowe's prices did. From Sep 22, 1981 to Nov 13, 2026, Home Depot grew 24.7% a year and Lowe's grew 15.5%. The record shows deepest falls of 70.4% for Home Depot and 62.3% for Lowe's.
Past returns for Home Depot and Lowe's do not show what either will do next.
Yes. Every HD and LOW figure here uses closing prices adjusted for stock splits and dividends, so dividends count as reinvested. Taxes, fees and trading costs are left out of the Home Depot and Lowe's figures.
At the Nov 13, 2026 close, Home Depot was 14.9% below its highest month-end value, set in Nov 2024. At the same close, Lowe's was 13.2% below its highest month-end value, set in Jan 2026. Home Depot's deepest fall on daily closes was 70.4%, from Dec 1999 to Mar 2009.
Lowe's' deepest fall was 62.3%, from Jul 1990 to Nov 1990.
Compare Home Depot and Lowe's with your own amount and dates in Compare Two Stocks
Daily closing prices adjusted for stock splits, with dividends reinvested, before taxes and fees. Both amounts are invested at the same close and valued at the Nov 13, 2026 close. See also: What if you invested in Home Depot · What if you invested in Lowe's.
This page presents historical market data and calculated results for a defined period. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold the security, fund, or index shown. Past performance is not indicative of future results.