At The Motley Fool, we know our readers like to be informed, so we've scouted out today's most relevant news items and brought them to you all on one page. We hope you find this midday edition informative and useful.

Home Depot raises hope
Home Depot (NYSE: HD) saw profits increase 14% in its second quarter. The largest home-improvement retailer said improving same-store sales and higher spending from customers fueled the improvement. The company got help from a rebound in its seasonal sales, which benefitted from better weather and storm-driven repairs. The company booked net income of $1.36 billion, up from $1.19 billion year over year. Home Depot raised its earnings forecast to $2.34 per share.

Analysts eager for a retail snapshot after the nation's downgrade paid close attention to Home Depot's results. But at the same time, rival Lowe's (NYSE: LOW) reported a 0.2% drop in earnings, missing both analysts' and the company's expectations. Read more at The Wall Street Journal. 

Wal-Mart gains, but with flat sales
 Retail giant Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) reported a net income of $3.8 billion for the second quarter, up from $3.6 billion a year earlier. The company said its profit had increased by 5.7%, while revenue rose 5.4%. Wal-Mart has been struggling with lower sales in the U.S., which CEO Mike Duke has attempted to combat by opening smaller stores and expanding Wal-Mart's online presence. Same-store sales held steady this quarter, after falling for the past eight. Read more at Bloomberg.

Europe sinking into a deeper hole
 Growth in European economies fell more than expected in the last three months, with the German economy dwindling down to a near-standstill. The numbers show that austerity programs may be curtailing the region's economic growth, which could make its debt crisis much more contagious. The European Union's gross domestic product rose by 0.2% for the second quarter, while Euro area growth fell by 0.8%.

Most worryingly, Germany's GDP fell to 0.1% compared to the previous quarter; the country has thus far driven much of Europe's economy. Experts worry that the region's bigger, better-credited countries may become weaker, making the whole zone more vulnerable to fiscal instability. Read more at The New York Times.

Research In Motion has an open door
 After Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) announced it would be buying Motorola Mobility (NYSE: MMI), many saw the end for Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM). But some experts say the company may benefit from this deal, if it plays the right cards.

RIM has been struggling to curb the amount of users moving toward Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) products or phones by Samsung and HTC, which operate on Google's Android OS. Now that Google is buying a handset company and creating possible disruption with licensees, RIM looks all the more like a sturdy smartphone maker and a possible acquisition. Also, any disruption in the Android world will give RIM much-needed time to bolster its products. However, RIM will still face strong competition from Microsoft and Nokia's venture in to Windows-powered smartphones. Read more at The Wall Street Journal.

So there you have it -- the top financial stories for this afternoon. If you're interested in getting all the news and commentary on these stocks, sign up to My Watchlist here -- it's free!