Best Buy has raised its outlook for the 2026 fiscal year, projecting higher revenue and earnings despite posting weaker profit in the third quarter (Q3).
The consumer electronics retailer now expects full-year revenue between $41.65bn and $41.95bn, up from its previous range of $41.1bn to $41.9bn.
It forecasts adjusted earnings per share of $6.25 to $6.35, compared with previous guidance of $6.15 to $6.30.
The company also updated its outlook for full-year comparable sales, now predicting an increase of between 0.5% and 1.2%, having earlier guided for a range between a 1% decline and a 1% rise.
Best Buy chief financial officer Matt Bilunas stated: “Today we are raising our full year forecast to reflect the strong Q3 results and our current outlook for Q4.
“In Q4, we expect comparable sales growth in the range of (1%) to 1% and adjusted operating income rate in the range of 4.8% to 4.9%.”
For Q3, Best Buy reported revenue of $9.67bn, slightly ahead of the $9.44bn recorded in the same period a year earlier.
Gross profit edged up to $2.24bn from $2.2bn in the same quarter of the previous year.
Earnings, however, declined. Net income for the quarter was $140m, down from $273m a year earlier, while operating income decreased to $198m from $350m in the same period of the year before.
In Q3, domestic revenue rose 2.1% year-on-year to $8.88bn, largely driven by a 2.4% increase in comparable sales.
On a category basis, computing, gaming and mobile phones were the main contributors to like-for-like sales growth on a weighted basis, offset in part by lower sales in home theatre and appliances.
Domestic online revenue totalled $2.82bn, up 3.5% on a comparable basis. E-commerce represented 31.8% of domestic revenue, compared with 31.4% in the same quarter of the previous year.
International revenue reached $794m, an increase of 6.1%.
The international gross profit rate improved to 22.8% from 22.5%.
Best Buy CEO Corie Barry commented: “Our comparable sales grew 2.7% as we continued to drive strong results across computing, gaming and mobile phones. We delivered sales growth across both online and stores, saw continued improvements in customer experience ratings and launched our Best Buy Marketplace.”
In Q3, the company returned $234m to shareholders, comprising $199m in dividends and $35m in share repurchases.
It also declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.95 per common share.
In August 2025, Best Buy formally launched its digital marketplace, powered by Mirakl, offering an expanded range of online products.
This launch more than doubles the number of products available on BestBuy.com and the Best Buy app.
The marketplace introduces hundreds of new brands and adds categories such as seasonal décor, automotive tech, office and home, movies and music.
