Balance Sheet: Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity

The balance sheet provides creditors, investors, and analysts with information on company resources (assets) and its sources of capital (its equity and liabilities). It normally also provides information about the future earnings capacity of a company assets as well as an indication of cash flows that may come from receivables and inventories.

Liabilities represents obligations of a company arising from past events, the settlement of which is expected to result in an outflow of economic benefits from the entity.

Lowe’s Cos. Inc., consolidated balance sheet: liabilities and stockholders’ equity

US$ in millions

	Jan 31, 2025	Feb 2, 2024	Feb 3, 2023	Jan 28, 2022	Jan 29, 2021	Jan 31, 2020
Short-term borrowings	—)	—)	499)	—)	—)	1,941)
Current maturities of long-term debt	2,586)	537)	585)	868)	1,112)	597)
Current operating lease liabilities	563)	487)	522)	636)	541)	501)
Accounts payable	9,290)	8,704)	10,524)	11,354)	10,884)	7,659)
Accrued compensation and employee benefits	1,008)	954)	1,109)	1,561)	1,350)	684)
Deferred revenue	1,358)	1,408)	1,603)	1,914)	1,608)	1,219)
Accrued dividends	645)	633)	633)	537)	440)	420)
Income taxes payable	491)	33)	1,181)	128)	168)	15)
Accrued interest	449)	456)	441)	275)	250)	221)
Self-insurance liabilities	432)	431)	424)	440)	435)	501)
Sales tax liabilities	195)	164)	314)	228)	256)	153)
Sales return reserve	167)	191)	234)	245)	252)	194)
Accrued property taxes	138)	130)	119)	124)	120)	104)
Other	1,435)	1,440)	1,323)	1,358)	1,314)	973)
Other current liabilities	3,952)	3,478)	4,669)	3,335)	3,235)	2,581)
Current liabilities	18,757)	15,568)	19,511)	19,668)	18,730)	15,182)
Long-term debt, excluding current maturities	32,901)	35,384)	32,876)	23,859)	20,668)	16,768)
Noncurrent operating lease liabilities	3,628)	3,737)	3,512)	4,021)	3,890)	3,943)
Deferred revenue, Lowe’s protection plans	1,268)	1,225)	1,201)	1,127)	1,019)	894)
Other liabilities	779)	931)	862)	781)	991)	712)
Noncurrent liabilities	38,576)	41,277)	38,451)	29,788)	26,568)	22,317)
Total liabilities	57,333)	56,845)	57,962)	49,456)	45,298)	37,499)
Preferred stock, $5 par value, issued and outstanding: none	—)	—)	—)	—)	—)	—)
Common stock, $.50 par value	280)	287)	301)	335)	366)	381)
Capital in excess of par value	—)	—)	—)	—)	90)	—)
Retained earnings (accumulated deficit)	(14,799)	(15,637)	(14,862)	(5,115)	1,117)	1,727)
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	288)	300)	307)	(36)	(136)	(136)
Shareholders’ equity (deficit)	(14,231)	(15,050)	(14,254)	(4,816)	1,437)	1,972)
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity (deficit)	43,102)	41,795)	43,708)	44,640)	46,735)	39,471)

Based on: 10-K (reporting date: 2025-01-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2024-02-02), 10-K (reporting date: 2023-02-03), 10-K (reporting date: 2022-01-28), 10-K (reporting date: 2021-01-29), 10-K (reporting date: 2020-01-31).

The financial data indicate several notable trends and shifts over the examined periods.

Short-term borrowings: Values are sparse, showing a presence only in the initial and a later year (2020 and 2023). There was an initial amount of 1,941 million USD which dropped to 499 million USD after not being reported for two periods, suggesting variability or strategic changes in short-term debt usage.
Current maturities of long-term debt: This liability peaked at 1,112 million USD in 2021, subsequently decreasing over the next two years before sharply rising to 2,586 million USD in 2025, hinting at possible refinancing or upcoming large debt repayments.
Current operating lease liabilities: These liabilities slightly fluctuated but maintained a relatively stable range from 487 to 636 million USD, indicating consistent lease obligations without significant escalation or reduction.
Accounts payable: Accounts payable grew from 7,659 million USD in 2020 to a peak of 11,354 million USD in 2022, then declined notably to 8,704 million USD in 2024, before a slight recovery to 9,290 million USD in 2025, reflecting changes in purchase volumes or payment management practices.
Accrued compensation and employee benefits: This line item more than doubled from 684 million USD in 2020 to 1,561 million USD in 2022, followed by a decline to approximately 1,000 million USD in 2024 and 2025, indicating fluctuations in employee-related liabilities, possibly due to workforce changes or compensation policies.
Deferred revenue: Deferred revenue increased from 1,219 million USD in 2020, peaking at 1,914 million USD in 2022, and then declined to 1,358 million USD by 2024, suggesting variations in prepayments or earnout of deferred income over time.
Accrued dividends: These increased steadily from 420 million USD in 2020 to 645 million USD in 2025, showing a gradual growth in declared but unpaid dividends.
Income taxes payable: Large fluctuations are evident, with very low amounts in 2020 (15 million USD) and 2024 (33 million USD), contrasting with a significant spike to 1,181 million USD in 2023. Such volatility indicates variable tax obligations possibly due to profit fluctuations or changes in tax management.
Accrued interest: This increased steadily from 221 million USD to a peak of 456 million USD in 2024 before slightly declining, correlating with increased debt levels.
Self-insurance liabilities: Relatively stable with minor decreases from 501 million USD in 2020 to around 430 million USD in the latest years, showing consistent insurance-related liabilities.
Sales tax liabilities and sales return reserve: Both items showed minor fluctuations over time, with sales tax liabilities fluctuating between 153 million USD and 314 million USD, and sales return reserve steadily decreasing from 252 million USD in 2021 to 167 million USD in 2025, indicative of consistent but slightly improving sales return experiences.
Accrued property taxes: These liabilities demonstrated a modest but steady increase, from 104 million USD in 2020 to 138 million USD in 2025.
Other current liabilities: Displayed a generally increasing trend with some fluctuation, rising from 2,581 million USD in 2020 to a peak of 4,669 million USD in 2023, followed by decreases and increases, which may suggest variability in miscellaneous obligations or accruals.
Current liabilities: The aggregate of current liabilities rose from 15,182 million USD in 2020 to around 19,668 million USD in 2022, then decreased to 15,568 million USD in 2024 before rising again in 2025, reflecting the impact of individual liability movements.
Long-term debt, excluding current maturities: There was a pronounced growth from 16,768 million USD in 2020 to 35,384 million USD in 2024, followed by a marginal reduction to 32,901 million USD in 2025, signaling increased reliance on long-term financing.
Noncurrent operating lease liabilities: These liabilities declined from 3,943 million USD in 2020 to around 3,512 million USD in 2023, then experienced minor increases, indicating a reduction in long-term lease obligations over time.
Deferred revenue from Lowe’s protection plans: This item showed steady increases from 894 million USD to 1,268 million USD across the periods, reflecting growth in warranty or protection plan sales.
Other and Noncurrent liabilities: Other liabilities fluctuated moderately, increasing initially then decreasing to 779 million USD by 2025. Noncurrent liabilities increased significantly from 22,317 million USD in 2020 to 41,277 million USD in 2024, suggesting growing long-term obligations.
Total liabilities: Total liabilities rose consistently from 37,499 million USD in 2020 to a high of 57,962 million USD in 2023, then slightly declined but remained near that peak, demonstrating overall growth in the company's obligations.
Common stock and capital accounts: Common stock value declined steadily from 381 million USD in 2020 to 280 million USD in 2025, while capital in excess of par value was reported only in 2021 at 90 million USD and was not present in other periods, possibly reflecting repurchase or retirement of shares.
Retained earnings: A sharp decrease is observed, moving from a positive 1,727 million USD in 2020 to a significant deficit of -14,799 million USD by 2025, indicating sustained losses or large distributions exceeding earnings.
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss): Improvement from negative balances to positive figures in 2023, maintaining a positive range around 288 to 307 million USD thereafter, suggesting improved other comprehensive income components.
Shareholders’ equity (deficit): Equity decreased from 1,972 million USD in 2020 to a large deficit of -14,231 million USD by 2025, reflecting the deteriorating retained earnings and possibly other comprehensive loss offsetting equity base.
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity (deficit): The total amount decreased from 39,471 million USD in 2020 to a low of 41,795 million USD in 2024, remaining relatively stable thereafter, showing an overall stable scale of financing despite shifts in composition.

Overall, the data suggest increasing financial leverage, mounting losses, and a shift toward greater long-term debt. Concurrently, the deterioration in equity and retained earnings reflects operational or financial challenges. The company's liabilities have grown notably, particularly in long-term categories, while equity has moved into a deficit position, indicating potential financial stress or restructuring activities.

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Lowe’s Cos. Inc. (NYSE:LOW)

Balance Sheet: Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity