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Barnes & Noble 4Q in line
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March 11, 1999: 9:58 a.m. ET
Bookseller's earnings before gain trail year ago; sales top $1 billion
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Barnes & Noble, the nation's largest bookseller, posted fiscal fourth-quarter operating earnings Thursday that were slightly below a year ago but in line with analysts' forecasts.
The company's net income for the three months ended Jan. 30 was $106 million, or $1.47 a diluted share. But excluding a $37.6 million after-tax gain on Bertelsmann's investment in the company's Web retail site, the earnings per share of 95 cents were in line with the consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by First Call.
A year ago, earnings from operations were $69.8 million, or 98 cents a diluted share. Including an $11.5 million, or 17-cent, charge for early extinguishment of debt, the bookseller earned $58.3 million, or 81 cents.
Sales for the quarter rose 6 percent to $1.03 billion from $968.5 million a year earlier.
For the fiscal year, ended Jan. 30, Barnes & Noble earned $92.4 million, or $1.29 a diluted share, compared with $53.2 million, or 76 cents, in the prior year.
Sales rose 8 percent to $3 billion, with the company's Web site contributing $70.2 million to the pot, a 381 percent increase from the prior year.
"We enter 1999 with a strong balance sheet, fueled by our considerable cash flow," said Leonard Riggio, Barnes & Noble's (BKS) chairman. "Because of the Bertelsmann investment, which has provided ample capital for barnesandnoble.com, our retail cash flows are now fully available to support strategic investment opportunities."
Barnes & Noble stock was unchanged Wednesday at 27-1/8. 
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