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What: Shares of Best Buy (BBY -2.19%) were getting a lift today, jumping as much as 16%, after the struggling retailer announced a new partnership with smartphone-maker Samsung.
So what: Best Buy said it will begin putting Samsung kiosks in its stores, a move that comes as the Korean electronics maker is challenging Apple for supremacy in the smartphone world with its Galaxy line. Investors also seem to believe that the Samsung platforms could be a lifeline for the bricks-and-mortar model, which has struggled to stave off competition from the likes of Amazon.com. Samsung plans to open a total of 1,400 kiosks in Best Buy locations with 900 open by early May.
Now what: Best Buy has come roaring back this year, more than doubling in just the last three months alone. Investors have been encouraged by a potential buyout offer from Founder Richard Schulze, and later, a report that showed that online sales grew 10%, an increase that seemed to result from Amazon's agreement to begin collecting sales tax. The latest deal with Samsung seems like yet another arrow in its quiver. Sales are still moving in the wrong direction, though, and Wall Street sees an 8.2% decline in the current quarter. I'd like to see that trend reverse before I got behind the retailer.
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