UPDATE: Lowe's Shares Surge On Upbeat Q3 Results

Shares of Lowe's Companies LOW gained more than 3% in pre-market trading after the company reported better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised its sales forecast for the fiscal year 2014. Lowe's now projects FY14 total sales to rise 4.5% to 5%, versus its August outlook of 4.5% growth. It now expects same-store sales to increase 3.5% to 4%. It projects earnings of about $2.68 per share for the fiscal year ending January 30, 2015.. The Mooresville, North Carolina-based company posted quarterly earnings of $585 million, or $0.59 per share, up from $499 million, or $0.47 per share, in the year-earlier period. Its sales climbed 5.6% to $13.7 billion from around $13 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.58 per share on sales of $13.54 billion. Lowe's comparable sales rose 5.1% in the period. During the quarter, Lowe's repurchased $900 million of stock under its share repurchase program and paid $229 million in dividends. As of October 31, 2014, the company operated 1,836 home improvement and hardware stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico. "Our employees' unwavering commitment to serving customers helped us achieve this quarter's strong results," commented Robert A. Niblock, Lowe's chairman, president and CEO. "We are pleased with our performance, and continue to be cautiously optimistic about the home improvement landscape." Lowe's shares surged 3.19% to $60.40 in pre-market trading.