S&P raises Home Depot's credit rating

Citing improved performance, Standard & Poor's announced Tuesday that it is raising its corporate credit rating for Home Depot from "A-" to "A".

Additionally, the credit ratings agency upped its short-term ratings from "A-2" to "A-1". These increasingly investment-grade ratings point to confidence in the company's ability to meet its financial commitments, with a stable outlook on the ratings.

Citing improved performance, Standard & Poor's announced Tuesday that it is raising its corporate credit rating for Home Depot from "A-" to "A".

Additionally, the credit ratings agency upped its short-term ratings from "A-2" to "A-1". These increasingly investment-grade ratings point to confidence in the company's ability to meet its financial commitments, with a stable outlook on the ratings.

"The company's financial policies, strong cash flow generating capability, and credit protection measures also support the ratings, even though the company used the bulk of its cash flow to repurchase shares," S&P credit analyst Andy Sookram told the Wall Street Journal.

Home Depot's sunny outlook is largely thanks to a recovering housing market, which has helped buoy consumer activity in the home improvement sector.

The retailer's most recent quarterly report demonstrated net income rising 17%, with sales rising 9% to $22.52 billion.