Barnes & Noble Third-Quarter Sales Drop

Barnes & Noble Inc. reported $1.1 billion in sales for its third quarter, a 4.4-percent decrease compared to the same quarter last year. Store sales decreased 4.4 percent to $971 million, while sales at BN.com increased two percent to $109 million.

"A significant drop-off in customer traffic and consumer spending impacted our business in the third quarter," says Steve Riggio, chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble Inc. "In a challenging environment with a comparable store sales decline of 4.6 percent this year, the company has aggressively managed expenses to operate profitably. Furthermore, the company is taking measures to reduce expenses for the balance of this year and next.