Online sales drive Best Buy revenue

MINNEAPOLIS Best Buy today reported increased revenue of 14% to $7.9 billion for its fiscal 2008 first quarter from $7 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2007. According to the company, the revenue increase reflected the net addition of 230 new stores (including 131 acquired stores) in the past 12 months and a comparable-store sales gain of 3%. The comparable-store sales gain was driven by an increase in the average transaction size, as the company's revenue mix continues to reflect a shift toward higher-ticket items. Best Buy also noted that consumers made more purchases online, and the company continued to add features and capabilities to its Web sites. Total first-quarter online revenue grew more than 20% as compared with the same quarter of the prior year.

Darren Jackson, Best Buy's evp of finance and cfo, said, "Early evidence suggests that consumer spending will be more difficult to predict this year--but it appears to be accelerating in lower-margin categories. We are confident that flat-panel TVs, gaming and notebook computers will remain very appealing to our customers. Yet the exact mix of sales could have an impact on our gross profit rate in the short-term. Based on the first-quarter results and trends in revenue mix that we expect to continue, we now anticipate earnings per diluted share of $2.95 to $3.15."