 Trends in the home improvement industry are strong, according to KeyBanc Capital Markets data. The Analyst: Bradley Thomas has an Overweight rating on Lowes NYSE: LOW with a 165 price target; a Sector Weight rating on Home Depot NYSE: HD; and an Overweight rating on Central Garden Pet Company NASDAQ: CENTA with a price target raised from 38 to 40.The Home Improvement Takeaways: During the second quarter, the indexed spend growth at Lowes and Home Depots was the strongest we have ever seen in our data for the respective companies, Thomas said in a Sunday note. See his track record here.We expect investments in the home to be a semi permanent shift in behavior during what seems to be an extended period that COVID-19 will impact the country, the analyst said. Looking ahead, he said home-related spending could benefit from a 500-billion wallet share as more consumers reduce their expenditures on travel, entertainment and dining out.The retailers have seen robust store growth in the months of June and July, Thomas said. The analyst prefers Lowes over Home Depot given Lowes larger exposure with the DIY customer.He reiterated an Overweight rating on Central Garden Pet, which Thomas said is expected to benefit from garden and pet category growth.HD Price Action: Home Depot shares were up 0.38 at 266.50 at last check Monday. LOW Price Action: Lowes shares were up 1.04 at 150.46. CENTA Price Action: Central Garden Pet shares were growing 5.02 to 36.39.Latest Ratings for CENTA DateFirmActionFromTo Aug 2020KeyBancMaintainsOverweight May 2020KeyBancMaintainsOverweight Feb 2020KeyBancMaintainsOverweight View More Analyst Ratings for CENTA View the Latest Analyst RatingsSee more from Benzinga Why This Ford Analyst Was Pleasantly Surprised By Dearborns Outlook 4 Takeaways On Pinterests Q2 Print Why BofA Is Turning Bullish On Retailer At HomeC 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. 