GameStop reports first $3 billion-plus quarter

Today, GameStop said that it accrued full-year sales of $8.8 billion in 2008, a 24 percent year-over-year rise. GameStop's stellar year was capped by its fourth-quarter performance, which saw sales rise 22 percent to $3.5 billion. That tally, the specialty retailer noted, was the first time it achieved sales in excess of $3 billion during a single quarter.

Those results translate to big gains for investors. GameStop also said today that full-year earnings per share is expected to range from $2.39 to $2.40, a 33 percent year-over-year rise. EPS for the fourth quarter alone will fall in the $1.33 to $1.34 range, a 17 percent to 18 percent rise over the same period in 2007. GameStop's announcement was not an official earnings report, so the retailer did not provide figures for net income (aka profit).

Looking ahead, GameStop expects sales to grow 10 percent to 12 percent in 2009, which moderately outpaces analysts' expectations for total industry growth. GameStop also plans to continue its retail expansion into 2009, saying it anticipates opening 400 new stores throughout the world during the year.

"The video game business continues to enjoy robust growth, making it the fastest growing of the many consumer goods categories," commented GameStop CEO Dan DeMatteo in a statement. "2008 marked yet another year of strong new hardware sales, which will again help drive sales of new video games in the years ahead. This trend continued in January as NPD reported US new hardware unit sales grew 29 percent, led by Nintendo’s Wii, DS and Microsoft’s Xbox 360."

Wall Street reacted favorably to GameStop's announcement today. As of press time, the specialty retailer was trading up $2.61 (10.49 percent) to $27.48.