Item 1. Business

General Information

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. and subsidiaries (the Company or Lowe’s) is a Fortune® 50 company and the world’s second largest home improvement retailer. As of February 1, 2019, Lowe’s operated 2,015 home improvement and hardware stores, representing approximately 209 million square feet of retail selling space. These operations included 1,723 stores located across 50 U.S. states, as well as 279 stores in Canada. In addition, as of February 1, 2019, Lowe’s operated 13 stores in Mexico; however, on November 20, 2018, the Company announced its plans to exit its retail operations in Mexico and is currently exploring exit alternatives.

The Canadian stores include RONA inc. (RONA) which was acquired by Lowe’s in 2016. RONA operates 212 stores in Canada as of February 1, 2019, as well as services approximately 231 dealer-owned stores. The RONA stores represent various complementary store formats operating under various banners.

Lowe’s was incorporated in North Carolina in 1952 and has been publicly held since 1961. The Company’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange - ticker symbol “LOW”.

See Item 6, “Selected Financial Data”, of this Annual Report on Form 10-K (Annual Report), for historical revenues, profits and identifiable assets. For additional information about the Company’s performance and financial condition, see also Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”, of this Annual Report.

Customers, Market and Competition

Our Customers

We serve homeowners, renters, and professional customers (Pro customers). Individual homeowners and renters complete a wide array of projects and vary along the spectrum of do-it-yourself (DIY) and do-it-for-me (DIFM). The Pro customer consists of two broad categories: construction trades; and maintenance, repair & operations.

Our Market

The U.S. market remains our predominant market, accounting for approximately 92% of consolidated sales for the fiscal year ended February 1, 2019. We are among the many businesses, including home centers, paint stores, hardware stores, lumber yards and garden centers, whose revenues are included in the Building Material and Garden Equipment and Supplies Dealers Subsector (444) of the Retail Trade Sector of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), the standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy.

NAICS 444 represents roughly half of what we consider the total U.S. market for our products and services. The broader market in which Lowe’s operates includes home-related sales through a variety of companies beyond those in NAICS 444. These consist of other companies in the retail sector, including mass retailers, home goods specialty stores, and online retailers, as well as wholesalers that provide home-related products and services to homeowners, businesses, and the government.

There are many variables that affect consumer demand for the home improvement products and services Lowe’s offers. Key indicators we monitor include real disposable personal income, employment, home prices, and housing turnover. We also monitor demographic and societal trends that shape home improvement industry growth.

Our Competition

The home improvement industry includes a broad competitive landscape. We compete with other national and international home improvement warehouse chains and lumberyards in most of our trade areas. We also compete with traditional hardware, plumbing, electrical, home supply retailers, and maintenance and repair organizations. In addition, we compete with general merchandise retailers, warehouse clubs, and online and other specialty retailers as well as service providers that install home improvement products. Location of stores continues to be a key competitive factor in our industry; however, the increasing use of technology and the simplicity of online shopping also underscore the importance of omni-channel capabilities as a

competitive factor. We differentiate ourselves from our competitors by providing better customer experiences while delivering superior value in products and service. See further discussion of competition in Item 1A, “Risk Factors”, of this Annual Report.

Products and Services

Our Products

Product Selection

To meet customers’ varying needs, we offer a complete line of products for construction, maintenance, repair, remodeling, and decorating. We offer home improvement products in the following categories: Lumber & Building Materials, Appliances, Seasonal & Outdoor Living, Tools & Hardware, Fashion Fixtures, Rough Plumbing & Electrical, Paint, Millwork, Lawn & Garden, Flooring, and Kitchens. A typical Lowe’s-branded home improvement store stocks approximately 34,000 items, with hundreds of thousands of additional items available through our Special Order Sales system and various online selling channels. See Note 19 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 8, “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data”, of this Annual Report for historical revenues by product category for each of the last three fiscal years.

We are committed to offering a wide selection of national brand-name merchandise complemented by our selection of private brands. In addition, we are dedicated to ensuring the products we sell are sourced in a socially responsible, efficient, and cost effective manner.

National Brand-Name Merchandise

In many product categories, customers look for a familiar and trusted national brand to instill confidence in their purchase. Lowe’s home improvement stores carry a wide selection of national brand-name merchandise such as Whirlpool®, GE®, LG®, and Samsung® appliances, Stainmaster® carpets, Sherwin-Williams® and Valspar® paints and stains, Pella® windows and doors, Pergo® hardwood flooring, Dewalt® power tools, Hitachi® pneumatic tools, Weber® and Char-Broil® grills, Owens Corning® insulation and roofing, GAF® roofing, James Hardie® fiber cement siding, Marshalltown® masonry tools and concrete, Husqvarna® outdoor power equipment, John Deere® riding lawn mowers, Werner® ladders, Quoizel® lighting, Nest® products, SharkBite® plumbing products, A. O. Smith® water heaters, Norton® abrasives, and many more. In 2018, we welcomed CRAFTSMAN® to our portfolio of brands offering a variety of tools, storage and outdoor power equipment. We also expanded our partnership with Sherwin Williams® becoming the only national home center to offer Krylon® spray paint, Minwax® stains and finishes, Cabot® stains, Thompson’s Water Seal® stains and waterproofing, and Purdy® paint brushes. In addition, we added brand name merchandise such as Estwing® hammers, Zoeller® pumps, MAPEI® tile-setting materials, and SMARTCORE® vinyl plank products to our portfolio. Our merchandise selection provides the retail and Pro customer a one-stop shop for a wide variety of national brand-name merchandise needed to complete home improvement, repair, maintenance, or construction projects.

Private Brands

Private brands are an important element of our overall portfolio, helping to provide significant value and coordinated style across core categories. We sell private brands in several of our product categories. Some of Lowe’s most important private brands include Kobalt® tools, allen+roth® home décor products, Blue Hawk® home improvement products, Project Source® basic value products, Portfolio® lighting products, Garden Treasures® lawn and patio products, Utilitech® electrical and utility products, Reliabilt® doors and windows, Aquasource® faucets, sinks and toilets, Harbor Breeze® ceiling fans, and Top Choice® lumber products.

Supply Chain

We source our products from vendors worldwide and believe that alternative and competitive suppliers are available for virtually all of our products. Whenever possible, we purchase directly from manufacturers to provide savings for customers and improve our gross margin.

To efficiently move product from our vendors to our stores and maintain in-stock levels, we own and operate distribution facilities that enable products to be received from vendors, stored and picked, or cross-docked, and then shipped to our retail locations or directly to customers. These facilities include 15 highly-automated regional distribution centers (RDC) and 15 flatbed distribution centers (FDC) in the United States. The FDCs distribute merchandise that requires special handling due to size or type of packaging such as lumber, boards, panel products, pipe, siding, ladders, and building materials. On average, each RDC and FDC serves approximately 115 stores. We also own and operate seven distribution centers, including four lumber yards, to serve our Canadian market.

In addition to the RDCs and FDCs, we also operate coastal holding facilities, transload facilities, appliance distribution centers, and a direct fulfillment center focused on parcel post eligible products. Collectively, our facilities enable our import and e-commerce, as well as parcel post eligible products, to get to their destination as efficiently as possible. Most parcel post items can be ordered by a customer and delivered within two business days at standard shipping rates.

In fiscal 2018, on average, approximately 80% of the total dollar amount of stock merchandise we purchased was shipped through our distribution network, while the remaining portion was shipped directly to our stores from vendors.

Our Services

Installed Sales

We offer installation services through independent contractors in many of our product categories, with Appliances, Flooring, Kitchens, Lumber & Building Materials, and Millwork accounting for the majority of installed sales. Our Installed Sales model, which separates selling and project administration tasks, allows our sales associates to focus on project selling, while project managers ensure that the details related to installing the products are efficiently executed. Installed Sales, which includes both product and labor, accounted for approximately 7% of total sales in fiscal 2018.

Extended Protection Plans and Repair Services

We offer extended protection plans for various products within the Appliances, Kitchens, Fashion Fixtures, Millwork, Rough Plumbing & Electrical, Seasonal & Outdoor Living, and Tools & Hardware categories. These protection plans provide customers with product protection that enhances or extends coverage offered by the manufacturer’s warranty, and provides additional customer friendly benefits that go beyond the scope of a manufacturer’s warranty. The protection plans provide in-warranty and out-of-warranty repair services for major appliances, outdoor power equipment, tools, grills, fireplaces, air conditioners, water heaters, and other eligible products through our stores or in the home through the Lowe’s Authorized Service Repair Network. We offer replacement plans for products in most of these categories when priced below $300, or otherwise specified category-specific price points. Our contact center takes customers’ calls, assesses the problems, and facilitates resolutions, making after-sales service easier for our customers by managing the entire process.

Selling Channels

We are continuing to enhance our omni-channel capabilities, which allows our customers to move from channel to channel with simple and seamless transitions even within the same transaction. For example, for many projects, more than half of our customers conduct research online before making an in-store purchase. For purchases made on Lowes.com, customers may pick up their purchase in-store, have their purchase delivered from a store, or have their purchase parcel shipped. In addition, flexible fulfillment options are available for in-store purchases and those made through the contact center. Regardless of the channels through which customers choose to engage with us, we strive to provide them with a seamless experience across channels and an endless aisle of products, enabled by our flexible fulfillment capabilities. Our ability to sell products in-store, online, on-site, or through our contact centers speaks to our ability to leverage our existing infrastructure with the omni-channel capabilities we continue to introduce.

In-Store

Our 1,790 Lowe’s-branded home improvement stores, inclusive of 1,723 in the U.S. and 67 in Canada, are generally open seven days per week and average approximately 112,000 square feet of retail selling space, plus approximately 32,000 square feet of outdoor garden center selling space. The 212 RONA stores operate under various complementary store formats that address target customers and occasions. Our home improvement stores in the U.S. and Canada offer similar products and services, with certain variations based on local market factors. We continue to develop and implement tools to make our sales associates more efficient and to integrate our order management and fulfillment processes. Our home improvement stores have Wi-Fi capabilities that provide customers with internet access, making information available quickly to further simplify the shopping experience.

Online

Through our websites and mobile applications, we seek to empower consumers by providing a 24/7 shopping experience, online product information, customer ratings and reviews, online buying guides and how-to videos and other information. These tools help consumers make more informed purchasing decisions and give them increased confidence to undertake home improvement projects. We enable customers to choose from a variety of fulfillment options, including buying online and picking up in-store as well as delivery or parcel shipment to their homes.

In addition, our LowesForPros.com online tool allows for easy online ordering for our Pro customers, and their choice of in-store pick-up or delivery, saving them time and money.

On-Site

We have on-site specialists available for retail and Pro customers to assist them in selecting products and services for their projects. Our Account Executives ProServices meet with Pro customers at their place of business or on a job site and leverage stores within the area to ensure we meet customer needs for products and resources. In addition, our Project Specialist Exteriors (PSE) program is available in all U.S. Lowe’s home improvement stores to discuss exterior projects such as roofing, siding, fencing, and windows, whose characteristics lend themselves to an in-home consultative sales approach.

Contact Centers

Lowe’s operates three contact centers which are located in Wilkesboro, NC, Albuquerque, NM, and Indianapolis, IN. These contact centers help Lowe’s enable an omni-channel customer experience by providing the ability to tender sales, coordinate deliveries, manage after-sale installations, facilitate repair services for Appliances and Outdoor Power Equipment, and answer general customer questions via phone, mail, e-mail, live chat, and social media.

Employees

As of February 1, 2019, we employed approximately 190,000 full-time and 110,000 part-time employees. Certain employees in Canada are subject to collective bargaining agreements. No other employees are subject to collective bargaining agreements. Management considers its relations with employees to be good.

Seasonality and Working Capital

The retail business in general is subject to seasonal influences, and our business is, to some extent, seasonal. Historically, we have realized the highest volume of sales during our second fiscal quarter (May, June and July) and the lowest volume of sales during our fourth fiscal quarter (November, December and January). Accordingly, our working capital requirements have historically been greater during our fourth fiscal quarter as we build inventory in anticipation of the spring selling season and as we experience lower fourth fiscal quarter sales volumes. We fund our working capital requirements primarily through cash flows generated from operations, but also with short-term borrowings, as needed. For more detailed information, see the Financial Condition, Liquidity and Capital Resources section in Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”, of this Annual Report.

Intellectual Property

The name “Lowe’s” is a registered service mark of one of our wholly-owned subsidiaries. We consider this mark and the accompanying name recognition to be valuable to our business. This subsidiary and other wholly owned subsidiaries own and maintain various additional registered and unregistered trademarks, trade names and service marks, including but not limited to retail names “RONA” and “Reno Depot”, and private brand product names “Kobalt” and “allen+roth”. These subsidiaries also maintain various Internet domain names that are important to our business, and we also own registered and unregistered copyrights. In addition, we maintain patent portfolios related to some of our products and services and seek to patent or otherwise protect certain innovations that we incorporate into our products, services, or business operations.

Sustainability

Lowe’s is committed to leveraging our time, talents and resources to make our world better by making our communities stronger and making people want to connect with us as their partner in home improvement.

In fiscal 2018, the Board of Directors created a Sustainability Committee that oversees sustainability and environmental matters and monitors related trends and risks. The Company also has a Sustainability Council, led by senior executives. Our strategy focuses on responsible sourcing, offering safe and eco-friendly products, maintaining diverse, healthy, engaged, and skilled workforce, supporting our local communities, and operating ethically and responsibly. We also established new goals to advance our corporate responsibility efforts and intend to work towards achieving the following goals by 2025:

•	Lowe’s and the Lowe’s Foundation intends to invest $350 million in local communities through partnerships and charitable contributions.

•	Lowe’s will encourage employees to contribute more than three million volunteer hours to improve the communities where they live, work, and play.

•	Lowe’s intends to ensure all strategic suppliers have sustainability goals.

•	Lowe’s intends to increase the number of eco-friendly products available to customers, with the goal of helping our customers save more than $40 billion in energy costs through the sale of ENERGY STAR® products.

•	Lowe’s intends to have all wood products responsibly sourced.

We want our customers to feel good about the high-quality products they choose at Lowe’s. Our products undergo a rigorous selection process, beginning with our sourcing decisions. We give considerable attention to how our products are created and about the people who make them. Through collaboration and established management systems, we monitor our suppliers’ practices to ensure we are securing high quality products from suppliers who support worker rights and protect the environment. We are also including innovative, efficient and eco-certified products into our portfolio that provide health and environmental benefits to meet the needs of an increasing customer demand. We are continuing to work with local and regional utilities to offer customers assorted rebates for a variety of environmentally efficient products including ENERGY STAR® and WaterSense®.

As a responsible corporate citizen, Lowe’s takes environmental sustainability and product safety very seriously. In fiscal 2018, we published an updated wood sourcing policy to ensure that all wood products sold in our stores originate from well-managed, non-endangered forests and committed to achieve 100 percent Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for all wood products sourced from identified regions at risk by 2020. To manage chemicals more responsibly, Lowe’s implemented a safer chemicals policy through a number of strategic actions and commitments. In addition, Lowe’s stopped the sale of all products containing methylene chloride and N-Methyl-2-Pyrrolidone (NMP) online and from our stores.

We are committed to reducing our climate impact through sustainable practices and conservation. In fiscal 2018, 399 retail locations upgraded to interior light-emitting diode (LED) lighting. We also replaced 104 aging HVAC units with high-efficiency units and added Variable Fan Drive systems in over 419 stores. We also signed our first renewable energy agreement comprised of 100 megawatts of renewable wind energy in 2018.

We are dedicated to promoting sustainable practices in the transportation industry, and we collaborate with the Environmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay program to reduce transportation emissions by managing and reducing fuel usage by creating incentives for freight contractors to improve efficiency and are proud to be the only retailer to achieve the Environmental Protection Agency SmartWay Excellence Award ten years in a row.

Lowe’s participates in the Carbon Disclosure Project’s climate, forestry, and water questionnaires to benchmark and quantify our environmental efforts. In fiscal 2018, Lowe’s also externally verified its greenhouse gas emissions data collection and analysis to validate our findings and increase confidence in our reporting. At a local level, store waste, including cardboard, broken appliances, wood pallets, and more, are recycled through national and regional partners, and we provide in-store recycling centers for our customers to bring in compact fluorescent lamp bulbs, plastic bags, and rechargeable batteries.

In addition, managing our water resources is essential, particularly in regions experiencing drought conditions. Our HydroPoint systems, which combine real-time weather data with site-specific information to reduce water consumption and save on utility costs, are now deployed to approximately 925 locations, covering all stores with operable irrigation systems.

For more information about Lowe’s sustainability efforts, please visit Newsroom.Lowes.com/Responsibility.

Investing in Our Communities

Lowe’s has a long and proud history of supporting local communities through volunteerism as well as public education and community improvement projects, beginning with the creation of the Lowe’s Foundation in 1957. In 2018, all U.S. Lowe’s stores completed at least one Lowe’s Heroes volunteer project, contributing approximately 200,000 hours to improve spaces in their local communities. Lowe’s and the Lowe’s Foundation donated approximately $46 million to schools and community organizations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, including disaster relief and rebuilding efforts.

Lowe’s continues to work with national nonprofit partners to strengthen and stabilize neighborhoods across the country. In 2018, Lowe’s contributed $7 million and teamed with Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together to provide housing solutions for families across the country. Lowe’s also supported nonprofits including the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Thurgood Marshall Scholarship, United Negro College Fund, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, SkillsUSA, The Nature Conservancy and Keep America Beautiful to improve communities and build tomorrow’s leaders.

Lowe’s is also committed to helping communities in the days leading up to and months following a natural disaster. In 2018, Lowe’s contributed more than $4 million to disaster relief and mobilized hundreds of volunteers to help communities recovering from storms like Hurricanes Florence and Michael. After Hurricane Florence made landfall, Lowe’s doubled the

Company’s match for the Employee Relief Fund, which provides financial support to associates affected by natural disasters and other hardships. That match continued throughout the year. Together, Lowe’s and its generous associates raised over $4.0 million in 2018, helping approximately 3,100 associates in need.

Today, Lowe’s strategic philanthropic giving focuses on the critical needs affecting its associates, communities and industry by supporting safe, affordable housing initiatives as well as skilled trade education.

For more information on Lowe’s partnerships and latest community improvement projects, visit Newsroom.Lowes.com/Responsibility.

Available Information

Our Annual Report, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, are made available free of charge through our internet website at www.Lowes.com/investor, as soon as reasonably practicable after such documents are electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC maintains an Internet site, www.sec.gov, that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.