Best Buy Co. Inc. reported that revenue declined again in Q4, ending a year that CEO Corie Barry predicted would be challenging for the consumer electronics sector.

Domestic revenue declined 0.9% to $13.41 billion in Q4 of fiscal 2024 ended Feb. 3. That was driven in part by a 5.1% decline in domestic comparable sales. Home theater, appliances, mobile phones and tablets led the comparable sales decline, partially offset by sales growth in gaming.

Net earnings were $460 million for the quarter, compared with $495 million in the year-ago period. 

For the full 2024 fiscal year, domestic revenue declined 6.3% to $40.10 billion. Comparable domestic sales declined 7.1%. Operating income also decreased, to $1.47 billion from $1.63 billion in fiscal 2023.

Best Buy projected the same trends will continue in fiscal 2025. The retailer forecasted revenue to reach between $41.3 billion and $42.6 billion. It also said comparable sales will decline up to 3.0%, or at the highest stay flat.

“As we enter FY25, we are energized about delivering on our purpose to enrich lives through technology in our vibrant, always changing industry,” CEO Corie Barry said in a statement. “In what we expect to be a year of increasing industry sales stabilization, we are focused on sharpening our customer experiences and industry positioning while maintaining, if not expanding, our operating income rate on a 52-week basis.”

Best Buy ranks No. 7 in the Top 1000. The database is Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of the largest North American online retailers. It falls under the Consumer Electronics category.

Best Buy Q4 online sales

Domestically, Best Buy online sales declined 4.8% to $5.10 billion in the quarter, the retailer said. That’s on top of a 13.0% year-over-year decline reported in Q4 2023. 

Best Buy online sales accounted for 38.0% of revenue in the quarter, remaining flat year over year. That was, however, an increase from 30.6% of domestic revenue from online sales in Q3.

Online sales for the full year declined 7.8%. Best Buy did not share what percentage of total annual sales were made online.

Buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS) remained a fulfillment method for a significant portion of Best Buy’s online sales in Q4. 44% of online orders used BOPIS, flat with the year-ago period. Best Buy also focused on improving ship-to-home fulfillment during the quarter. It increased the number of orders delivered within two days, Barry said without sharing specifics.

While digital penetration remained flat, Best Buy’s mobile app grew in Q4, the retailer said. On Black Friday, it was the number three shopping app and number four overall app in Apple’s App Store, Barry said.

Best Buy holiday results

Consumers were “deal focused” during the holiday shopping period, as Best Buy had anticipated, Barry said. 

Most shopping over the Cyber 5 period from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday followed typical historical patterns, she said. However, “the sales low in December was even steeper than we had modeled,” she said. That trend reversed later in the season as demand exceeded expectations in the four days before Christmas.

November sales declined 5% year over year, December sales were down 2%, and January declined 12%, Best Buy said. 

Best Buy Q4 earnings

For the quarter ended Feb. 3, 2024, Best Buy reported:

• Domestic online revenue declined 4.8% to $5.10 billion.
• Best Buy online sales drove 38.0% of revenue.
• Domestic revenue declined 0.9% to $13.41 billion.

For the nine months ended Oct. 28, 2023, Best Buy reported:

• Comparable online revenue declined 7.8%.
• Domestic comparable sales declined 7.1%.

Percentage changes may not align exactly with dollar figures due to rounding. Check back for more earnings reports. 

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