Barnes & Noble continues to benefit from Nook split

Barnes and Noble continues to narrow its losses. In the first quarter of fiscal 2015, the company’s comparable sales were bolstered by improving physical book industry trends, merchandising initiatives and store promotions.



Results were also bolstered by the company’s focus on its core bookstore business and its move to separate from its Nook Media unit. Barnes & Noble announced in late June its intention to drop Nook by 2015, after the ailing business unit lost hundreds of millions of dollars in five years. The move came as the company narrowed its net loss in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, and sent shares up about 9%.



Improvements have continued into the company’s first quarter for the period ended Aug. 2; it experienced a smaller-than-expected loss of $28.4 million, down from $87 million a share, a year earlier. Revenue decreased 7% to $1.24 billion, including a 5.3% drop at the company’s retail segment.



Same-store sales fell 5.1%, which the company attributed primarily due to lower sales of Nook products. Core comparable bookstore sales, which exclude sales of Nook products, decreased 0.4% for the quarter.



“We continued to improve our financial performance, while further executing on our strategic initiatives, including work on the proposed separation of the Barnes & Noble retail and Nook Media businesses,” said CEO Michael P. Huseby.



The retailer posted revenue of $1.24 billion in the period.