RadioShack Corp. has confirmed it will close around 1,100 U.S. stores after a huge dip in sales over the holidays, dropping its stock nearly 24 percent, according to Reuters.
The closures would leave the company with a little over 4,000 stores, including around 900 dealer franchise locations.
Sales for the Fort Worth, Texas-based chain amounted to $935.4 million in the quarter, down 20.1 percent from $1.17 billion the previous year.
Analysts had predicted sales of around $1.12 billion, according to Reuters.
The disappointing results were not exactly unexpected, since the consumer electronics industry in general suffered during the holidays, but many on Wall Street didn't predict the company would perform as badly as it did.
"The company's results were much worse than we anticipated, and cast serious doubt on RadioShack's long-term viability in our opinion," said BB&T Capital Markets analyst Anthony Chukumba, according to Reuters.
RadioShack rivals Best Buy and hhgregg Inc also reported weaker-than-expected sales during the holiday shopping season.
CEO Joe Magnacca, who took over the company in February 2013, said he expected a turnaround to take "several quarters," and has blamed the poor sales on disappointing shopper traffic, discounts offered by rivals, and operational problems.
"Mr. Magnacca and the new team deserve a lot of credit for the changes they are making, but it seems harder and harder for them to overcome the more significant obstacles," said Janney Capital Markets analyst David Strasser, according to Reuters.
Strasser said that RadioShack's announcement this week "reads somewhat like the Circuit City press releases of 2008, before they filed (for bankruptcy) in November 2008."
RadioShack's market share has dropped 30 percent in the last 10 years, according to Euromonitor International.
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