Overall sales actually rose at Books-a-Million in the first quarter, up $2.3 million to $118.2 million, while same-store sales slid 1.1 percent. Net income rose to $2.1 million, though much of the gain came from savings on stocks grants and compensation forfeited when ceo Sandra Cochran left the company. CEO Clyde Anderson says in the release, “Given the difficult economic environment, we’re pleased with our results for the quarter. While comparable sales numbers were down slightly, they represented an improvement over recent quarters, and our continued focus on cost control, gross margin and inventory management delivered improved earnings.” Release At […]
Booksellers
Comp Sales Fall 5.7% at BN, Which Raises Guidance After Smaller-than-Expected Loss
Barnes & Noble is good at beating the expectations of stock analysts and their own investor “guidance,” and they did it again for their first quarter, even as overall sales fell 4 percent to $1.105 billion. Same-store sales fell 5.7 percent for the quarter, a little better than their previous guidance, with overall store sales falling only 3.5 percent to $989 million. BN.com sales fell more, by 7 percent, at $93 million. The net loss from continuing operations of $2.1 million (or 4 cents a share) was better than the predicted loss of 10 cents to 20 cents a share. […]
Book Comps Rise at Hastings, Even As Overall Results Fall
First quarter sales at Hastings fell $6.2 million, or 4.7 percent, to $126 million, while net earnings were nearly halved, at $1.7 million. But same-store sales for books actually rose slightly–by 0.2 percent on an absolute basis, or by 1.7 percent if you account for the extra day of sales in the quarter last year (on February 29). Though the benefits may not have gone to book publishers, since the company says “strong sales of used and value books, as well as strong sales of new hardbacks were offset by lower sales of magazines.”Release
Comp Sales Off 4.5% at Waterstone's
Following the reported drops at WH Smith earlier this month, Waterstone’s parent HMV has reported that same-store sales declined by 4.5 percent in the last 16 weeks of their fiscal year, ending, April 25 (and 3.5 percent overall in that period.) For the full year, both comp sales and overall sales fell 3.8 percent at the bookseller. The company did not report actual sales today, but Waterstone’s has sales of 564 million pounds last year, so presumably this year’s sales are approximately 542.6 million pounds. The Bookseller says that layoffs have been discussed at the store level in recent weeks, […]
Amazon Continues Growth, But Media Sales Lag
Overall sales for the first quarter at Amazon.com increased by 18 percent to $4.89 billion, as operating income increased 23 percent to $244 million in the first quarter, and net income rose 24 percent to $177 million. But the growth was driven heavily by electronics, as the media segment–which includes books and digital downloads among other items–continues to lag the company’s overall performance. North American media sales of $1.305 billion were up 8 percent compared to a year (similar to the rise in the previous quarter), while international media sales of $1.418 billion were up just six percent, held back […]
Sales Off at WH Smith; New Betrams Owner Reports
High-street sales fell 6 percent at WH Smith in the first half of their fiscal year, at 522 million pounds, and profits of 47 million pounds declined by the same percentage. Same-store book sales declined less, at 3 percent, and the company says “we saw further good share performance versus the general high street with strong market shares in kids books…and celebrity autobiographies.” They add that “we increased the focus on kids books with major range reviews leading to wider ranges being introduced in areas such as picture books.” Smith release The new owners of UK wholesaler Bertrams also reported […]