(Reuters) – Home Depot Inc (NYSE 🙂 increased its full year sales forecast on Tuesday, as the demand for tools and building materials continues to rise after an increase in the first months of the pandemic.

Premarket trading saw the company’s share price rise by 4% to $307.99

People took on many DIY projects during the COVID-19 lockdowns and hired professional contractors to improve their homes. This helped boost sales at Home Depot (NYSE:) Cos Inc for 2020.

Analysts believe that demand for home-improvement services is strong despite rising prices.

Home Depot anticipates that comparable sales will increase by 33% for fiscal 2022, which is a significant improvement on its prior forecast of only a slightly positive growth. Refinitiv’s IBEES data showed that analysts expected a 1.4% increase.

The company is now expecting earnings per share to grow in the middle-single figures percentage range for fiscal 2022, in contrast to its earlier forecast of lower-singledigits percentage growth.