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what it is
Best Buy sells TVs, laptops, phones, and appliances through 1,117 stores in the U.S. and Canada.
how it gets paid
Last year Best Buy made $41.5B in revenue. Computing and mobile was the main engine at $18.68B, or 45% of sales.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 4.4% last year. This top-line momentum was fueled by acceleration in the computing and mobile cycles.
what just happened
Best Buy posted adjusted EPS of $1.40, beating the $1.30 estimate as comparable sales rose 2.7%.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
75/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
11.2x trailing p/e — the market's not buying it — or you found a deal
5.5% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
31.0% return on capital — every dollar works hard here
xvary composite: 68/100 — average
What they do
Best Buy sells TVs, laptops, phones, and appliances through 1,117 stores in the U.S. and Canada.
This is not a luxury moat. It is a convenience moat. You need a laptop today, a washer installed this week, and someone to fix your setup when it breaks. Best Buy has 891 U.S. stores plus 129 Canada stores, and services are 6% of sales, which means you are buying help with the box, not just the box itself.
How they make money
$41.5B
annual revenue · their business grew -4.4% last year
Computing and mobile
$18.68B
+2.7%
Consumer electronics
$12.04B
1.0%
Appliances
$4.98B
1.0%
Entertainment
$2.91B
1.0%
Services
$2.49B
flat
The products that matter
selling laptops, tablets, and phones
Computing and Mobile
$18.7B · 45% of sales
it is the biggest segment at $18.7B, which means nearly half of best buy still depends on consumers replacing devices on time.
45% of sales
selling TVs and home theater equipment
Consumer Electronics
$12.0B · 29% of sales
this category brings in $12.0B a year. it is large enough that promotional intensity here can move the whole income statement.
category scale
installing, supporting, and repairing devices
Services
$2.5B · 6% of sales
services is only $2.5B today, but it matters because it gives you revenue beyond the initial hardware sale.
repeat business
Key numbers
$42B
FY2026 sales
Revenue estimate → expected yearly sales → so what: analysts see Best Buy holding roughly flat versus the current $41.5B base, which says stabilization, not collapse.
31.0%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit earned on money used in the business → so what: Best Buy turns a basic retail format into unusually strong cash economics.
11.2x
trailing p/e
P/E → price compared with annual profit → so what: you are paying a discount multiple for a business that just posted its best comparable-sales result in four years.
5.5%
dividend yield
Dividend yield → cash paid to shareholders each year as a share of the stock price → so what: you are getting paid while waiting for demand to recover.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 50 / 100
- long-term debt $1.2B (7% of capital)
- net profit margin 3.3% — keeps 3 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 38% — $0.38 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in BBY 3 years ago → it's now worth $9,920.
The index would have given you $14,770.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Best Buy posted adjusted EPS of $1.40, beating the $1.30 estimate as comparable sales rose 2.7%.
The quarter worked because computing and mobile improved. That helped deliver the best comparable-sales result in four years, even with total quarterly revenue down 1% to $8.8B.
$8.8B
revenue
$1.40
eps
23.3%
gross margin
the number that mattered
Comparable sales rose 2.7%, which matters because it was Best Buy's best store-demand result in four years.
-
best buy’s recent performance marked a long-awaited fundamental recovery.the october-quarter results (fiscal year ends january 31st) suggest that the consumer electronics lull has ended, replaced by a steady cadence of product innovation and high-traffic promotional events that are successfully drawing resilient, albeit value-conscious, shoppers back into the company’s omnichannel ecosystem.
-
adjusted earnings per share of $1.40 climbed 11% from a year ago, handily beating our in-line $1.30 estimate.
-
comparable sales rose 2.7%, the best result in four years.
-
this top-line momentum was fueled by acceleration in the computing and mobile cycles.
-
specifically, pc upgrades following end-of-support for windows 10 and strong demand for nintendo’s switch 2.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is holiday-quarter electronics demand rolling over.
high
holiday demand miss
best buy’s story still depends on shoppers replacing big-ticket devices. the recent 2.7% comparable-sales improvement was encouraging, but electronics demand is famous for giving you one good quarter and then disappearing.
with 45% of sales in computing and mobile, a weak device cycle hits the biggest category first.
high
thin margin math
a 3.2% net profit margin means best buy keeps about 3 cents of each revenue dollar. discounts, mix shifts, or higher operating costs do not need to be dramatic to pressure earnings.
small margin pressure can do outsized damage on a $41.5B revenue base.
med
category concentration
computing and mobile alone is a $18.7B segment. that concentration is fine when upgrade cycles cooperate. it is less fine when consumers decide their current laptop is good enough for one more year.
one category drives nearly half the business.
med
false dawn recovery
full-year EPS still fell from $6.37 to $6.25. that means the recent improvement has not yet rewritten the bigger story. one better quarter is progress. it is not proof.
if momentum fades, the stock can stay cheap and still disappoint you.
45% of sales sit in computing and mobile, and the company only keeps 3.2% of revenue as profit. that is not much room for a recovery thesis to wobble.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
catalyst
comparable sales
the recent 2.7% gain was the best result in four years. you need that number to stay positive.
mix
computing and mobile
this $18.7B category is 45% of sales. if the upgrade cycle cools, the whole story cools with it.
margin
profit cushion
full-year net margin was 3.2%, and the latest quarterly margin was 2.2%. that is a slim cushion for a retailer.
earnings
recovery confirmation
watch whether earnings move from $6.25 toward the $6.70 estimate. that is the difference between rebound and value trap.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
top 20%
momentum score 2 — analysts expect above-average price performance in the year ahead. in human-speak: they think the rebound has some legs.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 — this sits in the middle of the pack on risk. not especially safe, not especially wild.
chart momentum
top 20%
technical score 2 — the stock’s recent trend is better than most. price action and fundamentals are finally pointing the same way.
earnings predictability
75 / 100
guidance tends to be usable. you are not buying a chaotic earnings story here.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 2 consecutive quarters — 424 buyers vs. 381 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 0.2B shares. net buying for 2 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$55
$116
$70
current price
$86
target midpoint · +23% from current · 3-5yr high: $115 (+65% · 17% ann'l return)
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