Circuit City Soars

Circuit City Stores (Richmond, Va.) reported that same-store sales for its consumer electronics chain rose 10 percent for its second quarter ending Aug. 31, 2002. That, plus the 12 percent same-store sales rise in its CarMax automotive division, caused the company's stock to jump 10.1 percent in heavy trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.

Many analysts feared the surge in consumer electronics, which began a year ago following the September 11 attacks and Americans'propensity to find comfort at home during the winter months, had crested. Recently, top rival Best Buy Corp. (Edina, Minn.) announced a sluggish summer and a 2.7 percent same-store sales rise for its second quarter. It said it would not meet its profit targets and that it was considering downsizing its Sam Goody chain of stores. Analysts were expecting, at best, a 3-7 percent same-store sales increase for Circuit City.

W. Alan McCollough, Circuit City's chairman, president and chief executive officer, credited some of the sales improvement to changes the chain is making. Circuit City is remodeling the television departments of 300 of its stores, upgrading store lighting and improving customer service. “We are focused on driving traffic in our stores as well as strengthening our market share,” he said.