Home improvement retail chain Lowe's (LOW) beat earnings estimates for its first quarter, sharing revenue of $21.36 billion and gains of $3.06 per share. Lowe's saw fewer consumers roll up their sleeves and spend big on DIY home projects, but CEO Marvin Ellison isn't so worried as loyalty programs and online spending are reportedly offsetting any pull back concerns.

D.A. Davidson Managing Director and Senior Research Analyst Michael Baker joins Catalysts to talk Lowe's latest figures as the retailer managed to narrow sales declines compared to previous forecasts, while also commenting on the broader retail sector.

"One of the more important drivers of demand is home price appreciation and... we have seen that improve. I think now on a year-over-year basis, eight months in a row," Baker explains. "So that is a positive for sure, but there are also negatives. Turnover is way down, there are other pressures that the consumer is facing. So we have some positives, we have some negatives, it all mixes into, again, continued negative comps [comparable sales]."

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This post was written by Luke Carberry Mogan.