Best Buy’s Fiscal Third-Quarter Results Disappoint; Excessive Promotions and Weakness in Europe to Blame

On Tuesday, Best Buy (BBY) reported poor fiscal third-quarter results that showed modest comparable store sales growth but material operating-income deterioration. Though results of the world’s largest electronics chain came in lower than our expectations during the quarter, Best Buy reaffirmed its adjusted diluted earnings per share guidance range of $3.35 to $3.65 for the year. Nevertheless, we are placing our fair value estimate for Best Buy under review while we re-evaluate the implications of its aggressive pricing actions on long-term profitability. We expect to lower our fair value estimate for the retailer materially. Best Buy’s total revenue increased 1.7% during the period thanks to modest domestic same store sales expansion led by its online channel, offset by international performance … Read more