HomeDepot_March2015
A Home Depot employee is seen outside a store in Los Angeles on March 17, 2015. Reuters/Lucy Nicholson

Home Depot Inc, the world's largest home improvement chain by sales, reported a 14.5 percent rise in quarterly profit as customers in North America spent more on home repairs after a harsher-than-usual winter.

Home Depot's total comparable sales rose 6.1 percent in the first quarter ended May 3.

The company's net income rose to $1.58 billion, or $1.21 per share, from $1.38 billion, or $1.00 per share, a year earlier.

Net sales rose to $20.89 billion from $19.69 billion.