From Nov 13, 2006 to the Nov 13, 2026 close, $1,000 in Home Depot (HD) became $15,951 and $1,000 in Lowe's (LOW) became $11,213, with dividends reinvested.

  • Last 10 years: $3,486 in Home Depot, $3,930 in Lowe's
  • Last 5 years: $1,062 in Home Depot, $1,065 in Lowe's
  • Last year: $974 in Home Depot, $1,005 in Lowe's
  • Deepest fall: Home Depot 54.1% (Feb 13, 2007 to Mar 6, 2009); Lowe's 60.6% (Feb 23, 2007 to Mar 6, 2009)
Home Depot (HD)
Total return1,495%
A year14.8%
Deepest fall54.1%
Volatility26.5%
Sharpe ratio0.37
Beta to S&P 5000.95
Lowe's (LOW)
Total return1,021%
A year12.8%
Deepest fall60.6%
Volatility30.4%
Sharpe ratio0.26
Beta to S&P 5001.01

From Nov 13, 2006 to Nov 13, 2026, Home Depot grew 14.8% a year and Lowe's grew 12.8%. The higher rate, Home Depot's, came with narrower daily swings. Volatility was 26.5% for Home Depot and 30.4% for Lowe's. The Sharpe ratio is the yearly return above a fixed 5% risk-free rate, per unit of volatility.

Sharpe ratios were 0.37 for Home Depot and 0.26 for Lowe's. Over the same dates, the price record shows deepest falls of 54.1% for Home Depot and 60.6% for Lowe's. From Nov 14, 2006 to Nov 13, 2026, betas to the S&P 500 were 0.95 for Home Depot and 1.01 for Lowe's.

Growth of $1,000 in Home Depot and Lowe's

The $1,000 in Home Depot and the $1,000 in Lowe's swapped places 6 times at month ends. The latest swap came at the end of Aug 2009. Since then, the $1,000 in Home Depot has been worth more at every month end.

Across all 241 month ends, Home Depot's value was the higher one at 218 and Lowe's' at 22, and the two were level at 1.

At the end of Apr 2018, $1,000 had become $6,852 in Home Depot and $3,457 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 Oct 2012. The $1,000 in Lowe's did so in Aug 2014.

The $1,000 in Home Depot first stood at $10,000 or more at a month end in Jul 2020. The $1,000 in Lowe's did so in Oct 2021.

Home Depot (HD), circleLowe's (LOW), square
$1k$2k$5k$10k$20k200920122015201820212024HD $15,951LOW $11,213
$1k$2k$5k$10k$20k201220182024HD $15,951LOW $11,213

Home Depot and Lowe's returns by period

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'sHome Depot a yearLowe's a year
Since both startedfrom Sep 22, 1981$21,277,845$678,65624.7%15.5%
Last 20 yearsfrom Nov 13, 2006$15,951$11,21314.8%12.8%
Last 10 yearsfrom Nov 14, 2016$3,486$3,93013.3%14.7%
Last 5 yearsfrom Nov 12, 2021$1,062$1,0651.2%1.3%
Last yearfrom Nov 13, 2025$974$1,005−2.6%0.5%

How far Home Depot and Lowe's fell below their highs

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, the deepest falls of Home Depot and Lowe's came in the same stretch. Home Depot fell 54.1% from Feb 13, 2007 to Mar 6, 2009.

Lowe's fell 60.6% from Feb 23, 2007 to Mar 6, 2009. Home Depot closed back at its old high on Jan 24, 2011, 1 year and 10 months after the low. Lowe's closed back at its old high on Apr 17, 2012, 3 years and 1 month after the low.

Home Depot was 20% or more below its high at 54 of 241 month ends. Lowe's was 20% or more below its high at 63.

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%.

Home Depot (HD), circleLowe's (LOW), square
−50%−40%−30%−20%−10%0%200920122015201820212024
−50%−40%−30%−20%−10%0%201220182024

Home Depot vs Lowe's by year

The bars cover 19 full calendar years, 2007 to 2025. Home Depot rose in 14 of them and Lowe's in 14. Home Depot's yearly change was higher in 8 years and Lowe's' in 11. Both rose in 13 and both fell in 4. In 2 years, one rose while the other fell.

Both had their lowest year in 2007: Home Depot −31.1%, Lowe's −26.8%. Both had their highest year in 2021: Home Depot +59.5%, Lowe's +63.3%. The widest one-year gap between them was 2011: Home Depot +23.5%, Lowe's +3.4%. In 2025, the latest full year, Home Depot fell 9.3% and Lowe's fell 0.3%.

Home Depot (HD), circleLowe's (LOW), square
−40%−20%0%+20%+40%+60%+80%2010201520202025

Home Depot and Lowe's monthly returns

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%.

Home Depot, % each month
JFMAMJJASOND
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
Lowe's, % each month
JFMAMJJASOND
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

Home Depot and Lowe's: rolling 1-year return and volatility

The rolling 1-year return is the change over the 12 months to each month end. From Nov 2007 to Nov 2026, Home Depot's rolling 1-year return ran from −38.5% (12 months to Jun 2008) to +88.3% (to Sep 2012). Over the same months, Lowe's' ran from −32.8% (12 months to Feb 2009) to +124.7% (to Mar 2021).

Home Depot's 12-month change was below zero at 51 of those 229 month ends, and Lowe's' at 64. Home Depot's 12-month change was the higher one at 127 month ends and Lowe's' at 101, and the two were level at 1.

Home Depot (HD), circleLowe's (LOW), square
+0%+50%+100%201020132016201920222025
+0%+50%+100%201220172022
20%30%40%50%20182020202220242026
20%30%40%50%201920222025

Home Depot and Lowe's: volatility, risk-adjusted return, beta and correlation

These measures cover Nov 13, 2006 to Nov 13, 2026. Over those dates, volatility was 26.5% for Home Depot and 30.4% for Lowe's. The Sortino ratio counts only falling days as risk. Against the same 5% rate, Sortino ratios were 0.54 for Home Depot and 0.38 for Lowe's. The Calmar ratio is the yearly return divided by the deepest fall.

Calmar ratios were 0.27 for Home Depot and 0.21 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 Nov 14, 2006 to Nov 13, 2026, Home Depot's beta was 0.95, so it tended to move less than the index.

Over the same dates, Lowe's' beta was 1.01, so it tended to move about as much as the index. The correlation of Home Depot's and Lowe's' daily moves was 0.82, a close link. A correlation of 1 would mean they always moved together, 0 no link and −1 always opposite.

MeasureHome DepotLowe's
Volatility, a year26.5%30.4%
Sharpe ratio0.370.26
Sortino ratio0.540.38
Calmar ratio0.270.21
Deepest fall54.1%60.6%
Beta to the S&P 500from Nov 14, 20060.951.01
Upside capturemonths from Dec 201698%112%
Downside capturemonths from Dec 201695%109%
Biggest one-day rise+14.07%Oct 28, 2008+16.50%Oct 28, 2008
Biggest one-day fall−19.79%Mar 16, 2020−24.77%Mar 16, 2020
Price against its 50-day average+11.7%+14.4%
Price against its 200-day average+5.9%+3.0%
Correlation of daily movesfrom Nov 14, 20060.82

About Home Depot and Lowe's

What Home Depot and Lowe's do, from each company's latest annual report filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Home Depot

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

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)

About this calculation

What it calculates
For Home Depot and Lowe's over the same dates: the value of $1,000 in each, total and yearly return, the deepest fall and its recovery, every calendar year, monthly and rolling 12-month changes, and the risk measures below.
Prices
Daily closing prices adjusted for stock splits and dividends, so dividends count as reinvested.
Dates
Both start on the same trading day: the first day both price histories used here share, or the start of the period chosen, and both are valued at the Nov 13, 2026 close.
Yearly return
(final value ÷ $1,000)1 ÷ years − 1, with years counted as days ÷ 365.
Deepest fall
The largest drop from a closing high to a later closing low; recovery is the first close back at that high.
Volatility
How widely daily returns spread around their average over the dates shown: the square root of the average squared gap from that average (dividing by one less than the number of days), × √252, as a yearly figure.
Sharpe ratio
(yearly return − 5%) ÷ volatility, with a fixed risk-free rate of 5% a year.
Sortino ratio
(yearly return − 5%) ÷ downside deviation: the square root of the average squared daily fall (days above 0 count as 0), × √252.
Calmar ratio
Yearly return ÷ the deepest fall over the dates shown.
Beta and correlation
From daily returns on the days both stocks and SPY traded: beta is the covariance of a stock's daily returns with SPY's ÷ the variance of SPY's; correlation is that of the two stocks' daily returns.
Biggest one-day moves
The largest daily rise and fall in adjusted close over the dates shown.
Moving-average distance
The last close against the simple average of the last 50 and 200 closes. A fact about price, not a signal.
Capture
Over the last 10 years of month ends: a stock's average monthly change in the months SPY rose (fell), as a percentage of SPY's average change in those months.
Rounding
Calculated at full precision and rounded for display: whole dollars, one decimal for percentages, two for ratios.
Exclusions
Taxes, fees, currency conversion and companies no longer in the index.
Freshness
Recalculated after each trading day. Company profiles come from each company's latest annual report, with the filing date shown.
Reproduce
Open this comparison in Compare Two Stocks

Common questions

Which had the higher return, Home Depot or Lowe's stock?

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.

Is Home Depot or Lowe's the better stock to buy?

SmartFin does not say which to buy. This page reports what Home Depot and Lowe's prices did. From Nov 13, 2006 to Nov 13, 2026, Home Depot grew 14.8% a year and Lowe's grew 12.8%. The record shows deepest falls of 54.1% for Home Depot and 60.6% for Lowe's.

Past returns for Home Depot and Lowe's do not show what either will do next.

Do the Home Depot and Lowe's returns include dividends?

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.

Has Home Depot or Lowe's stock dropped from its high?

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 54.1%, from Feb 2007 to Mar 2009.

Lowe's' deepest fall was 60.6%, from Feb 2007 to Mar 2009.

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.

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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.