As it had warned investors last week, Barnes & Noble announced disappointing holiday sales Thursday. For the nine-week period ending December 29, 2012, Nook device sales, in-store sales and BN.com sales were all down from the same period last year. The company adjusted 2013 guidance for Nook Media, its newly formed subsidiary with Microsoft downward to $ 3 billion.
The Nook segment — which includes devices, digital content and accessories — had revenues of $ 311 million, down steeply from last year’s $ 448 million. While digital content sales — ebooks, newsstand, and apps — increased by 13.1 percent, the decline was driven by lower device sales, which Barnes & Noble didn’t break out. However, the company noted that Nook sales declined “due to lower unit volume and average selling prices.”
“Nook device sales got off to a good start over the Black Friday period, but then fell short of expectations for the balance of holiday,” CEO William Lynch said in a statement. “We are examining the root cause of the December shortfall in sales, and will adjust our strategies accordingly going forward.”
Retail sales — consisting of physical stores and BN.com — had revenues of $ 1.2 billion, down 10.9 percent from last year. Barnes & Noble didn’t break out physical stores versus BN.com, but said the “decrease was attributable to an 8.2 percent decline in comparable store sales, store closures and lower online sales.” “Core comparable store sales” — which exclude Nook products — fell by 3.1 percent “due to lower bookstore traffic.”
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