In their earnings conference call with investors, Barnes & Noble noted that “inventories declined $155 million or 11 percent compared to last year.” They say they were able to “improve inventory turns to the highest levels in our history” and indicated “our in stock percentage of being in stock on key titles and back list did not suffer at all” as a result. Other supply chain improvements “resulted in reduced purchases from book wholesalers which of course carry lower markups.” A good portion of the inventory reductions were in music, and the company indicated DVDs and music combined now comprise […]
Booksellers
BN Sees Continued Sales Drop After 7.3 Percent Decline in Q4
Barnes & Noble reported fourth quarter sales for the period ending January 31 of $1.439 billion, down 7.3 percent on a same-store basis and down 4.8 percent overall, as BN.com sales of $157 million were down 10.4 percent for the quarter. Net earnings for the quarter were $81.2 million, or $1.46, in line with the previously-reduced guidance. CEO Steve Riggio says in the release, “As we look to 2009, we expect the challenging environment to continue. Sales forecasts have been planned accordingly and expenses have been cut. The strength of our balance sheet remains a top priority. And, while we […]
Analyst Hopeful on B&N Stock
In advance of tomorrow’s fiscal fourth quarter earnings report, the consensus poll of analysts expects Barnes & Noble to earn $1.48 per share for the quarter on revenue of $1.74 billion. Those earnings would be in line with the company’s reduced guidance in early January, forecasting a range of $1.30 to $1.60 a share, though the sales forecast could be high given the retailer’s weak holiday report. (BN has been weak in the two prior fourth quarters, with sales of $1.69 billion a year ago.) As reported in this piece, William Armstrong with CL King and Associates has a “buy” […]
Amazon Beats the Street (and Passes BN)
Anaysts exected Amazon to stumble in the fourth quarter due to the economy and the etailer surprised investors with another strong report card. Sales increased 18 percent to $6.70 billion as operating income was flat at $272 million. Net income rose 9 percent to $225 million in the fourth quarter, or 52 cents per share. (Analysts were expecting only 39 cents a share, and sales of $6.44 billion.) For the coming quarter, the company expects sales to continue growing from between 9 percent and 19 percent. North American media sales (defined as sales from all sellers in categories such as […]
Currency Helps/Hurts Indigo
Reporting results for their fiscal third quarter, ending right after Chrismas, Canada’s dominant bookseller Indigo recorded sales of $330 million, up $7.4 million from a year ago. The Indigo and Chapters superstores rose 2.2 percent on a same-store basis, while the small format Coles store comps rose 3.2 percent. Online sales fell 2.6 percent to $30 million. The plunging Canadian dollar helped sales themselves hold up, but it hurt the company’s margins. Pre-tax earnings fell 3.6 percent to $40.1 million, while net income dropped considerably at $26.8 million, down from $49.2 million last year due to various tax line items. […]
Sales Fall at Waterstone's
Sales for the five-week holiday period fell 2 percent on a same-store basis and 0.9 percent overall–but extend the period to 10 weeks, and the comps were down 4 percent as overall sales fell 3.2 percent. (The company did not report actual revenue numbers.) Waterstone’s does disclose to the Bookseller that they sold almost 30,000 Sony Readers in the UK since the device went on sale there in September.Release Also in the UK, Bloomsbury issued a nonspecific trading update that says activity “was in line with management’s expectations” and they expect to have cash at the end of the fiscal […]