Best Buy finally saw some bright spots this summer but signaled it will still be next year before it will likely turn to growth.

While its sales continued to dip — a downward trajectory the electronics retailer has been unable to shake for almost three years — Best Buy saw more people buy tablets and computers as laptops with built-in AI hit the market in recent months.

"We don't believe anything in our data signals that customer behavior has changed in a way that would make us increasingly cautious," said Corie Barry, CEO of the Richfield-based electronics chain, during a call with analysts Thursday morning. "Thus, we are balancing our optimism in both the industry and our positioning with a pragmatic approach to likely uneven customer behavior going forward."

In May, June and July, overall comparable sales fell 2.3% at Best Buy, but that was better than expected by company leaders and analysts, as was its $9.3 billion in revenue for the quarter. A leaner Best Buy earned $291 million, or $1.34 a share, up 7% from a year ago, showing profitability progress that will likely reassure investors the company and the electronics industry are on the path to stability.

"We are starting to see both an industry that's returning to growth and then our positioning within the industry is helping us capture that growth trajectory," Barry said on a media call. "At down 2.3%, that is the least negative comp we have seen since Q4 of fiscal '22 so again this a pretty material trajectory change for the business to the positive."

There has been optimism this year that the worst of the days for Best Buy may be behind it. In the spring, Best Buy reported sales declines that were not as bad as expected, and its shares had the biggest one-day price increase since March 2020.

On Thursday, Best Buy shares closed up more than 14%.

A big part of the stock rebound has been investors' hope that AI-infused laptops would entice people to start to buy electronics again. In June, Best Buy became the biggest U.S. seller of Microsoft's new AI-enhanced Copilot+ laptops. With more than 40 models, Best Buy has the largest assortment of Copilot+ PCs in the country and is the exclusive retailer for about 40% of them. On the day the Copilot+ PCs became available in stores, Best Buy's stocks rose to its highest price in a year.

Despite the hype, AI laptops have had a small impact on sales overall so far, but it is still early, Barry said. By the back half of the year, AI will likely be a bigger piece of the sales pie as more products become available that can help lower the price point, Barry said on the media call. For example, artificial intelligence is expected to be a major feature of the latest iPhone that should be unveiled next month with more to come for how AI will play a part in Apple's computing lineups.

Best Buy saw comparable domestic sales for tablets and computers grow 6% during the second quarter. Appliance, home theater and gaming sales are still on the decline.

Best Buy was able to beat expectations and manage costs, said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData's retail division. However, Best Buy still needs to do more to convince customers to shop at its specialty stores as opposed to mass merchandisers like Walmart which have beefed up their electronics sections, Saunders said. Many times when Saunders visits Best Buy stores they are too quiet and empty, he said.

"They need to give people reasons to come here," Saunders said.

Best Buy has had a stormy last few years as it has tried to weather a long delay in demand after many consumers stocked up on electronic devices during the pandemic. The retailer has had 11 straight quarters of sales declines. The company has had to adjust its expenses and cut the number of stores and staff as it tries to adapt to changing customer preferences and shopping habits.

This year company leaders have said many consumers will soon start to update and replace their electronics, which would finally lead to industry normalization. Best Buy recently updated its branding to focus more on discovery and imagination as it makes its case to shoppers that it is the place to go to find the latest in consumer technology. As part of that effort, the company is setting up modular merchandising displays in its stores to showcase products for vendors like Greenworks lawn tools.

For the full fiscal year, Best Buy adjusted its comparable sales downward to a range from decreasing 3% to decreasing 1.5%.