Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) stock is 4.1% higher to trade at $392.36 at last glance, after the home improvement retailer reported better-than-expected adjusted earnings of $2.72 per share on $38.20 billion in revenue for the fourth quarter despite a 4% sales decline.
The company also reaffirmed its annual forecast amid strong demand from professional customers, with average ticket size rising despite a drop in the number of transactions. The report was so solid that sector peer Lowe's (LOW) is 2% higher today as well.
HD sports a 13.6% lead for 2026, but overhead pressure at $400 capped a rally earlier this month. The shares are forming a bull flag pattern on the charts, bouncing off their 40-day moving average after clearing the trendline at the beginning of January.
Options traders already lean overwhelmingly bullish toward HD. This is per the stock's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 2.46 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which sits higher than 92% of readings from the last 12 months.
Drilling down to today's options activity, 4,550 calls and 5,690 puts have already crossed the tape -- six times the volume typically seen at this point. The most active contracts are the March 350 put and the weekly 2/27 400-strike call.
