Home Depot 3rd-quarter net income rises 1.4 pct

ATLANTA (AP) -- A boost from the gradually recovering housing market helped Home Depot's net income edge up in its fiscal third quarter.

The world's biggest home-improvement retailer says that its net income rose to $947 million, or 63 cents per share for quarter that ended Oct. 28. That's up from $934 billion, or 60 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding a charge for closing some stores in China, Home Depot earned 74 cents per share. That topped analysts' expectations for earnings of 70 cents per share.

Revenue rose more than 4 percent to $18.13 billion. Wall Street expected $17.92 billion.

Home Depot, based in Atlanta, runs more than 2,200 stores in the U.S. and around the world. Its smaller rival Lowe's Cos. reports its earnings Monday.

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