NEW YORK – Barnes & Noble said that its fiscal fourth-quarter loss narrowed as the company continues to invest in its Nook e-reader business, yesterday.

The loss was wider than analysts expected and its shares fell more than six per cent in morning trading.

The largest US traditional book retailer also broke out sales of its Nook e-reader for the first time. As it faces tough competition from online retailers and discount store, Barnes & Noble has invested heavily in the Nook e-reader and e-books. Results — the most transparent Barnes & Noble has been about the division to date — show that the division is a work in progress. Nook sales fell 11 per cent to US$164 million ($14.4 billion) during the quarter as the company took back its Nook Simple Touch e-reader from retailers to make room for new inventory. But for the fiscal year, Nook sales rose 34 per cent to US$933 million.

“We grew our business in 2012 while continuing to make the necessary investments for the future of the business,” said CEO William Lynch.

The largest US traditional book retailer said its net loss in the three months ended April 28 totaled US$57.6 million or US$1.08 per share. That’s smaller than its loss of US$59.4 million, or US$1.04 per share, a year ago. A tax charge hurt results by 10 cents per share. The total number of shares rose 1 per cent during the quarter.