Total sales at Barnes & Noble fell 6.0% in the fiscal year ended April 28, 2018, compared to fiscal 2017, and the retailer posted a net loss of $125.5 million last year, compared to net income of $22.0 million in fiscal 2017. Revenue last year was $3.66 billion, down from $3.89 billion in fiscal 2017.
The net loss includes a host of one-time charges: impairment charges of $135.4 million, $16.2 million of severance charges, and $15.3 million of strategic initiative costs. Excluding one-time charges in both fiscal years, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) was $145.4 million in fiscal 2018, down from $187.2 million a year ago.
The poor results did not come as a surprise. In early January, B&N reported disappointing holiday results in which both overall sales and comparable store sales fell 6.4% compared to the fiscal 2017 holiday period.
In fiscal 2018, comp store sales declined 5.4% compared to the prior year. Revenue in B&N’s bookstore segment fell 5.5% in the year, while Nook sales dropped 24.0%.
In a statement, CEO Demos Parneros said in fiscal 2018 B&N developed a “long-term strategic turnaround plan” which helped cut costs by $52 million last year. “Our plan, which includes sales improvements and cost reductions,” Parneros said, “is expected to yield immediate improvement in fiscal 2019, resulting in EBITDA of $175 million to $200 million.”
