Best Buy Earnings Hobbled by Promotions, Guidance

U.S. same-store sales were up 1.7% year-over-year, though international same-store sells fell 6.4%. Online sales in the United States rose 15.1%.

Best Buy narrowed its second-quarter estimates of the impact of its “Renew Blue” transformation program. The original estimate called for a negative impact in the range of 40 to 70 basis points in fourth-quarter operating income. The company now believes the negative impact will be in a range of 60 to 70 basis points, which comprises a negative 80 to 90 basis points impact on gross margin and a 10 to 20 basis point improvement on SG&A expenses.

The company did not change its forecast for its fiscal year 2015 beginning in February. Best Buy still expects operating income to be down by 60 to 90 basis points in the first quarter, 70 to 100 basis points in the second quarter and 30 to 60 basis points in the third quarter.

Regarding the current quarter, the company’s CFO said:

[W]e are also highly aware of the public statements that are being made by our competitors as it relates to their promotional plans for Black Friday and the fourth quarter. We know that we will be facing an increasingly promotional environment. … So if our competition is in fact more promotional in the fourth quarter, we will be too and that will have a negative impact on our gross margin.

The overall impact of Best Buy’s report is negative. Higher costs going forward coupled with lower revenues and declining margins in the United States. The company continues to struggle, even though it beat the consensus earnings estimate and met the revenue estimate.

Shares were down about 6% in premarket trading this morning, at $41.07 in a 52-week range of $11.20 to $44.66. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $45.00 before the results were announced.