Best Buy 3Q sales rise 21% as consumers continue buying home products

Best Buy Co. Inc. said its sales rose about 21% for the latest quarter as it continued benefiting from online sales and items that help consumers work, learn and cook from home during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The retailer on Tuesday reported a third-quarter profit of $391 million, or $1.48 a share, compared with $293 million, or $1.10 a share, in the year-ago period.

After adjustments, earnings were $2.06 a share, ahead of the $1.71 a share analysts polled by FactSet had expected.

Sales were $11.85 billion, up from $9.76 billion in the year-ago period. Analysts were looking for $11 billion.

For the quarter ended Oct. 31, comparable online sales nearly tripled in the U.S., its largest market. Domestic comparable sales rose about 23%, while international comparable sales rose 27%. The metric includes sales from stores temporarily closed or operating a curbside-only operating model during the quarter due to Covid-19.

The company isn't providing a financial outlook due to the pandemic's uncertainty.

"While the demand for the products and services we sell remains at elevated levels as we start the fourth quarter, it is very difficult for us to predict how sustainable these trends will be due to the significant uncertainty related to the various impacts of the pandemic," Finance Chief Matt Bilunas said.

Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com