No Geek Squad Fix For Tariff Headaches As Best Buy Tumbles 7.3%
It’s not Black Friday, but Best Buy’s stock had a fire sale anyway. Despite beating profit expectations, shares plummeted 7%+ on Thursday after missing revenue targets and slashing its full-year outlook. The retailer struggles to find footing in the post-pandemic era, and tariffs aren’t helping.
- posted a $1.15 EPS (vs. $1.09 expected) and $8.77B in revenue (vs. $8.81B expected) — while lowering its full-year sales forecast from $41.4B–$42.2B to $41.1B–$41.9B.
- Comparable sales tumbled 0.7% (vs. -0.4% expected), and net income took an 18% nosedive from last year — with particular weaknesses in home theaters, appliances, and drones.
Supply chain shuffle: Best Buy’s tariff troubles run deep as the big-box seller scrambles to diversify away from China — dropping from 55% to just 30-35% of merchandise sourced there. The company already hiked prices in mid-May as a “very last resort,” while re-negotiating with vendors, and pushing for manufacturing flexibility. CEO Corie Barry called the situation “incredibly fluid” following Wednesday’s federal court ruling that struck down many Trump tariffs, leaving retailers guessing what comes next.
