Best Buy Reports Q4 EPS From Cont. Ops. Of $0.88 - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY) reported fourth-quarter net earnings to shareholders of $293 million or $0.83 per share, compared to a loss of $409 million or $1.21 per share, last year. The company's prior year quarter results included goodwill impairment charge of $822 million. Earnings per share from continuing operations was $0.88, compared to a loss of $1.36 per share, prior year. Adjusted net earnings from continuing operations was $436 million or $1.24 per share, for the quarter.

On average, 24 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report profit per share of $1.01 for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Revenue decreased to $14.47 billion, from $14.92 billion, prior year. Analysts expected revenue of $14.66 billion for the quarter. Comparable store sales declined 1.2% for the quarter.

Best Buy expects that total company revenue and comparable store sales will remain slightly negative - similar to the fourth quater of fiscal year 2014 - in the first half of its fiscal 2015.

The company said there are discrete year-over-year income tax-related items that will have a negative impact on its fiscal 2015 income tax expense and the fiscal 2015 income tax rate. Best Buy estimates the combined earnings per share impact of these discrete income tax-related items on both a GAAP and non-GAAP basis to be: negative $0.03 to $0.04 in the first-quarter; flat to positive $0.01 in the second quarter; flat to negative $0.01 in the third-quarter; and negative $0.09 to $0.10 in the fourth-quarter.