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Repairs to drought-stricken flower beds and sales of freezers designed to hold bulk food helped Lowe's Cos. post better-than-expected profit for its fiscal second quarter. But the nation's faltering economy and sluggish housing industry still sent profit at the nation's second-largest home improvement chain down nearly 8%. For the three months that ended Aug. 1, results were boosted in part by consumers who undertook small outdoor gardening projects -- repairing their yards from last year's drought -- and bought freezers to accommodate bulk food purchases to cope with soaring grocery prices.

Home improvement giant Lowe's Cos. continues to come under heavy criticism from activists, some politicians and customers after pulling its ads from a reality TV show featuring Muslim Americans. The North Carolina company decided to stop advertising on the show "All-American Muslim," on Discovery Communications Inc.'s TLC channel, after complaints by the Florida Family Assn., a conservative Christian group that lobbies companies to promote "traditional, biblical values. " The association praised the move, but the decision sparked immediate backlash.

The dismal housing market dragged down fiscal fourth-quarter profit at Lowe's Cos. by 60%, and executives at the home-improvement chain said Friday that they saw little hope of a substantive fix from a federal effort aimed at helping struggling homeowners. To cope in the worsening recession, Lowe's said it was further cutting back the number of stores it planned to open in 2009 and offered a profit forecast for the year that was short of Wall Street's expectations. The news sent the company's shares down nearly 7%. Lowe's earned $162 million, or 11 cents a share, in the three months ended Jan. 30. That's down from $408 million, or 28 cents, during the same period last year.

Lowe's Cos., the world's second-largest home-improvement chain, will lay off about 1,950 workers and close 20 stores in 15 states. The store in Westminster in Orange County quietly closed at the end of business Sunday along with nine other Lowe's locations across the country. The other California store that will shut down is in Los Banos in Merced County. The company said in a statement Monday that the Los Banos store and the other still-open locations targeted in the downsizing will close within a month.

Home improvement giant Lowe's Cos. continues to come under heavy criticism from activists, some politicians and customers after pulling its ads from a reality TV show featuring Muslim Americans. The North Carolina company decided to stop advertising on the show "All-American Muslim," on Discovery Communications Inc.'s TLC channel, after complaints by the Florida Family Assn., a conservative Christian group that lobbies companies to promote "traditional, biblical values. " The association praised the move, but the decision sparked immediate backlash.

Home Depot Inc. and Lowe's Cos., the largest U.S. home-improvement chains, are stocking fewer fake Christmas trees as shoppers plan to save money by buying the real thing. "As the economy has gotten tougher, artificial trees have become more of a discretionary purchase," Craig Menear, Home Depot's executive vice president of merchandising, said in an interview at a store in Atlanta, its home base. The retailer will stock the same number of cut trees as last year and a smaller percentage of factory-made trees, Menear said.

Lowe's Cos., the world's second-largest home-improvement chain, will lay off about 1,950 workers and close 20 stores in 15 states. The store in Westminster in Orange County quietly closed at the end of business Sunday along with nine other Lowe's locations across the country. The other California store that will shut down is in Los Banos in Merced County. The company said in a statement Monday that the Los Banos store and the other still-open locations targeted in the downsizing will close within a month.

Lowe's Companies Inc., the home improvement retailer, said it named New York-based McCann-Erickson its agency of record and awarded the agency its $100-million broadcast account. The agency, a unit of the Interpublic Group of Companies Inc., will develop Lowe's creative broadcast campaigns. It will also be responsible for strategic planning and media buying for magazines, radio, television and billboards.

* Lowe's Cos. said its earnings rose 27% in the fiscal second quarter to $230.2 million, or 60 cents a share, 2 cents higher than estimates. The home improvement retailer's sales rose 19% to $4.44 billion, and sales at stores open at least a year grew 5.6%. Lowe's also said it will stop selling less-profitable electronics by year-end to free up space for better-selling kitchen appliances and cabinets.

Other earnings, excluding one-time gains and charges unless noted: * Home improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. said its earnings jumped a better-than-expected 48% in the fiscal fourth quarter to $106.2 million, or 30 cents a share, 3 cents higher than forecasts. Sales at stores open at least a year grew 8.2%, and total revenue jumped 22% to $2.92 billion. * Nordstrom Inc. said fiscal fourth-quarter profit rose 13% to $66.

Home Depot Inc. still sees room for profit growth this year as consumers take up long-delayed maintenance and repair projects for their homes, even if a return to bigger renovations will have to wait. Cost controls helped the company post a higher-than-expected quarterly profit and raise its full-year earnings forecast Tuesday. While sales missed expectations in a weak economy, investors were relieved that the top home-improvement chain still expects an increase for the rest of the year.

Home Depot Inc. and Lowe's Cos., the largest U.S. home-improvement chains, are stocking fewer fake Christmas trees as shoppers plan to save money by buying the real thing. "As the economy has gotten tougher, artificial trees have become more of a discretionary purchase," Craig Menear, Home Depot's executive vice president of merchandising, said in an interview at a store in Atlanta, its home base. The retailer will stock the same number of cut trees as last year and a smaller percentage of factory-made trees, Menear said.

Lowe's Cos. posted fiscal third-quarter profit that met analysts' estimates. Net income fell to $344 million, or 23 cents a share, from $488 million, or 33 cents, a year earlier, the home-improvement retailer said. Excluding a write-down in the value of some stores and a tax benefit, earnings totaled 24 cents a share, in line with analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Revenue declined 3% to $11.4 billion in the three months that ended Oct. 30.

Lowe's Cos. executives said they expected sales to begin rising again in fiscal 2010 as the housing market stabilizes, even as consumers have changed the way they approach home improvement projects in the recession. Still, the 2010 earnings outlook for the Mooresville, N.C., home improvement chain disappointed investors, and shares fell 88 cents to close at $21.07. Lowe's reiterated guidance for fiscal 2009 of $1.13 to $1.21 a share, with sales down about 3%.

The dismal housing market dragged down fiscal fourth-quarter profit at Lowe's Cos. by 60%, and executives at the home-improvement chain said Friday that they saw little hope of a substantive fix from a federal effort aimed at helping struggling homeowners. To cope in the worsening recession, Lowe's said it was further cutting back the number of stores it planned to open in 2009 and offered a profit forecast for the year that was short of Wall Street's expectations. The news sent the company's shares down nearly 7%. Lowe's earned $162 million, or 11 cents a share, in the three months ended Jan. 30. That's down from $408 million, or 28 cents, during the same period last year.

Repairs to drought-stricken flower beds and sales of freezers designed to hold bulk food helped Lowe's Cos. post better-than-expected profit for its fiscal second quarter. But the nation's faltering economy and sluggish housing industry still sent profit at the nation's second-largest home improvement chain down nearly 8%. For the three months that ended Aug. 1, results were boosted in part by consumers who undertook small outdoor gardening projects -- repairing their yards from last year's drought -- and bought freezers to accommodate bulk food purchases to cope with soaring grocery prices.

Lowe's Cos., the No. 2 U.S. home improvement retailer, said earnings declined in its fourth quarter due to discounts, but predicted a strong increase in profit for the year ahead. The optimistic forecast pushed up shares of Lowe's and its rival, Home Depot Inc. Lowe's shares jumped $4.33, or 8%, to close at $58.91, while Home Depot shares rose $3.74, or 9%, to close at $43.75. Both trade on the NYSE. Lowe's said earnings in its fourth quarter ended Feb. 2 declined 5% to $140.

The president of Lowe's Cos., the nation's second-largest home improvement retailer, said he remained optimistic that conditions would improve despite a weak housing market and tight credit standards that have created a tough sales environment. Larry Stone told analysts the economic downturn was affecting the entire housing sector. But he said the company couldn't wait for the "housing gods to help us," so steps were being taken to improve profit. Company executives plan to delay the opening of about 20 stores this year in several hard-hit markets, including California.

Fire has destroyed a Silicon Valley building caught up in a court fight over whether the onetime IBM lab where engineers invented a forerunner of the modern hard drive should be preserved as a landmark. About 75 firefighters spent more than eight hours battling the blaze at the structure, known as IBM Building 25, before bringing the flames under control Saturday morning, authorities said. "The entire structure is a total loss," said Capt. Anthony Pianto of the San Jose Fire Department.