Lowe’s Cos. Inc., balance sheet: property, plant and equipment

US$ in millions

		Jan 29, 2021		Jan 31, 2020		Feb 1, 2019		Feb 2, 2018		Feb 3, 2017		Jan 29, 2016
	Land
	Buildings and building improvements
	Equipment
	Construction in progress
	Property, cost
	Accumulated depreciation
	Property, less accumulated depreciation

Item	Description	The company
Property, cost	Amount before accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization of physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale. Examples include, but are not limited to, land, buildings, machinery and equipment, office equipment, and furniture and fixtures.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s property, cost increased from 2019 to 2020 and from 2020 to 2021.
Property, less accumulated depreciation	Amount after accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization of physical assets used in the normal conduct of business to produce goods and services and not intended for resale. Examples include, but are not limited to, land, buildings, machinery and equipment, office equipment, and furniture and fixtures.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s property, less accumulated depreciation increased from 2019 to 2020 and from 2020 to 2021.

Lowe’s Cos. Inc., asset age ratios

		Jan 29, 2021	Jan 31, 2020	Feb 1, 2019	Feb 2, 2018	Feb 3, 2017	Jan 29, 2016
	Average age ratio
	Estimated total useful life (years)
	Estimated age, time elapsed since purchase (years)
	Estimated remaining life (years)

Asset age ratio	Description	The company
Average age ratio	As long as straight-line depreciation is used, this is an accurate estimate of asset age as a percentage of depreciable life. The relative age is a useful measure of whether the company’s fixed asset base is old or new. Newer assets are likely to be more efficient.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s average age ratio of depreciable property, plant and equipment improved from 2019 to 2020 and from 2020 to 2021.
Estimated total useful life	Over longer time periods, this ratio is a useful measure of company’s depreciation policy and can be used for comparisons with competitors.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s estimated total useful life of depreciable property, plant and equipment increased from 2019 to 2020 but then decreased significantly from 2020 to 2021.
Estimated time elapsed since purchase	The approximate age in years of a company’s fixed assets. Useful for comparison purposes.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s estimated time elapsed since purchase of depreciable property, plant and equipment improved from 2019 to 2020 and from 2020 to 2021.
Estimated remaining life		Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s estimated remaining life of depreciable property, plant and equipment increased from 2019 to 2020 but then decreased significantly from 2020 to 2021.

		Jan 29, 2021	Jan 31, 2020	Feb 1, 2019	Feb 2, 2018	Feb 3, 2017	Jan 29, 2016
	Selected Financial Data (US$ in millions)
	Accumulated depreciation
	Property, cost
	Land
	Asset Age Ratio
	Average age¹

2021 Calculations

¹ Average age = 100 × Accumulated depreciation ÷ (Property, cost – Land)
= 100 × ÷ ( – ) =

Asset age ratio	Description	The company
Average age	As long as straight-line depreciation is used, this is an accurate estimate of asset age as a percentage of depreciable life. The relative age is a useful measure of whether the company’s fixed asset base is old or new. Newer assets are likely to be more efficient.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s average age ratio of depreciable property, plant and equipment improved from 2019 to 2020 and from 2020 to 2021.

		Jan 29, 2021	Jan 31, 2020	Feb 1, 2019	Feb 2, 2018	Feb 3, 2017	Jan 29, 2016
	Selected Financial Data (US$ in millions)
	Property, cost
	Land
	Depreciation expense
	Asset Age Ratio (Years)
	Estimated total useful life¹

2021 Calculations

¹ Estimated total useful life = (Property, cost – Land) ÷ Depreciation expense
= ( – ) ÷ =

Asset age ratio	Description	The company
Estimated total useful life	Over longer time periods, this ratio is a useful measure of company’s depreciation policy and can be used for comparisons with competitors.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s estimated total useful life of depreciable property, plant and equipment increased from 2019 to 2020 but then decreased significantly from 2020 to 2021.

		Jan 29, 2021	Jan 31, 2020	Feb 1, 2019	Feb 2, 2018	Feb 3, 2017	Jan 29, 2016
	Selected Financial Data (US$ in millions)
	Accumulated depreciation
	Depreciation expense
	Asset Age Ratio (Years)
	Time elapsed since purchase¹

2021 Calculations

¹ Time elapsed since purchase = Accumulated depreciation ÷ Depreciation expense
= ÷ =

Asset age ratio	Description	The company
Estimated time elapsed since purchase	The approximate age in years of a company’s fixed assets. Useful for comparison purposes.	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s estimated time elapsed since purchase of depreciable property, plant and equipment improved from 2019 to 2020 and from 2020 to 2021.

		Jan 29, 2021	Jan 31, 2020	Feb 1, 2019	Feb 2, 2018	Feb 3, 2017	Jan 29, 2016
	Selected Financial Data (US$ in millions)
	Property, less accumulated depreciation
	Land
	Depreciation expense
	Asset Age Ratio (Years)
	Estimated remaining life¹

2021 Calculations

¹ Estimated remaining life = (Property, less accumulated depreciation – Land) ÷ Depreciation expense
= ( – ) ÷ =

Asset age ratio	Description	The company
Estimated remaining life		Lowe’s Cos. Inc.’s estimated remaining life of depreciable property, plant and equipment increased from 2019 to 2020 but then decreased significantly from 2020 to 2021.

	Lowe’s Cos. Inc.	Other companies (not purchased previously)
Financial Statements
Common-Size Financial Statements
Analysis of Financial Ratios
Relative Valuation
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Valuation
Economic Value Added (EVA)
Long-term Trends
Analysis of Components of Financial Statements
Financial Reporting Quality

	All companies
Financial Statements
Common-Size Financial Statements
Analysis of Financial Ratios
Relative Valuation
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Valuation
Economic Value Added (EVA)
Long-term Trends
Analysis of Components of Financial Statements
Financial Reporting Quality

Lowe’s Cos. Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Analysis of Property, Plant and Equipment