Best Buy up on better-than-expected holiday sales
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Best Buy Co. jumped 10% on Friday to be the biggest gainer in the S&P 500 after the struggling electronics retailer reported better-than-expected holiday sales in the U.S., giving hope that business may begin to stabilize under a turnaround plan installed by its new Chief Executive Hubert Joly. Analysts also said the sales results may help founder Richard Schulze convince private equity firms to join him on a bid to take Best Buy private. Best Buy’s comparable sales in the U.S. in the nine-week holiday period ended Jan. 5 were flat, compared with expectations for a decline. Still, Wall Street raised worry with the company’s sharply reduced free cash flow guidance for the second time since November.
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