GameStop posts $8.8 billion annual revenue

Anyone following the NPD Group's monthly retail-sales reports is well aware that the industry's sales have been hitting record levels despite the abundance of publisher layoffs and general economic woes. So it stands to reason that the largest specialty gaming retailer might have similarly record-setting revenues.

GameStop backed up that bit of conventional wisdom today, releasing its sales figures for the full fiscal year 2008. For the 12 months ended January 31, 2009, GameStop racked up a company best of $8.8 billion in sales, up more than 24 percent from the year before. Profits were also up, given that the retailer reported more than $398 million in net earnings, an increase of more than 38 percent year-over-year. It is the eighth straight year that GameStop has posted sales and earnings growth.

To single out the company's fourth quarter (November through January), the crucial holiday season's revenues totaled $3.5 billion, nearly 22 percent higher than the previous year. Again, net earnings were up, with GameStop bringing in $232.3 million more than it put out for the quarter, a year-over-year surge of more than 22 percent.

Although GameStop's revenues were bolstered by the addition of more than 1,000 stores through new locations and the acquisition of French retailer Micromania, comparable store sales were also up significantly for the retailer. For the full-year, those stores posted 12 percent sales growth, with a jump of nearly 10 percent over the holidays.

GameStop expects 2009 to be another record-setting year, although the growth is projected to slow down somewhat. For the full year, the retailer is projecting revenue growth of 10-12 percent, with comparable store sales up 4-6 percent. That more than keeps pace with its expectations for new game sales in the US, which GameStop expects to increase 5-10 percent over the course of 2009.

Regardless of new game sales, it's the used-game business that produces the most money for GameStop. Though used games represented just 23 percent of the retailer's sales in 2008, they accounted for nearly 43 percent of its gross profit.