Costco Wholesale (COST) stock is trading slightly higher Friday after the warehouse club beat top- and bottom-line expectations for its fiscal 2025 first quarter thanks in part to impressive online sales.
In the 12 weeks ending November 24, Costco's revenue increased 7.5% year over year to $62.2 billion, driven by a 5.2% rise in same-store sales. Its earnings per share were up 12.8% from the year-ago period to $4.04.
The report also showed that e-commerce sales jumped 13% year over year, helped by the Costco app being downloaded 2.9 million times during the quarter. This brought the total number of downloads to approximately 42 million.
From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance
Be a smarter, better informed investor.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
"E-commerce traffic, conversion rates, and average order value were all up year over year, helping to drive another strong quarter of comparable sales growth," said Costco Chief Financial Officer Gary Millerchip on the company's conference call.
The executive also noted that Costco "ended Q1 with 77.4 million paid household members, up 7.6% versus last year, and 138.8 million cardholders, up 7.2% year over year."
Millerchip added that the end of the quarter, COST "had 36.4 million paid Executive Memberships, up 9.2% versus last year. And Executive Members now represent 46.8% of paid members and 73.1% of worldwide sales."
Costco's top- and bottom-line results beat analysts' expectations. Wall Street was anticipating revenue of $62.1 billion and earnings of $3.79 per share, according to CNBC.
Is Costco stock a buy, sell or hold?
Costco Wholesale shares have had an impressive run in 2024, up nearly 51% on a total return basis (price change plus dividends) for the year to date. And Wall Street is bullish on the retail stock.
According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, the average analyst target price for the consumer staples stock is $1,003.89, representing a slight premium to current levels. Meanwhile, the consensus recommendation is a Buy.
Financial services firm Jefferies is one of the more bullish outfits on COST stock with a Buy rating and a $1,145 price target.
"COST continues to report favorable results, with a bottom-line beat even excluding the $100 million tax benefit," says Jefferies analyst Corey Tarlowe. "Traffic led the enterprise core comp growth, operating margin expanded, and digital discretionary trends were robust. Looking ahead, we remain encouraged by COST's business model to report consistent top- and bottom-line growth ahead."
Related Content
-
S&P 500 Slips Ahead of Fed Week: Stock Market TodayAll eyes are on the Federal Reserve ahead of next week's critical policy meeting.
-
September Fed Meeting: Live Updates and CommentaryThe September Fed meeting is a key economic event, with Wall Street keyed into what Fed Chair Powell & Co. will do about interest rates.
-
I'm an Investment Strategist: This Is How the Fed's Next Rate Move Could Impact Your WalletInterest rate cuts might be coming, which could affect everything from your credit card debt to your mortgage. It's smart to prepare now — here's how.
-
I'm a Retirement Planner: These Are Three Common Tax Mistakes You Could Be Making With Your InvestmentsDon't pay more tax on your investments than you need to. You can keep more money in your pocket (or for retirement) by avoiding these three common mistakes.
-
Want to Shave 10 Hours Off Your Workweek? A Startup Expert Shows How AI Can HelpArtificial intelligence is overhauling how companies operate, freeing up entrepreneurs and their workers to skip the menial stuff and get down to business.
-
Dow Gains 617 Points as Rate Cuts Near: Stock Market TodayWednesday's economic data didn't shift Wall Street's expectations that the Fed is preparing for a rate cut at next week's meeting.
-
Hot August CPI Report Doesn't Shift the Rate-Cut Needle: What the Experts SayThe August CPI came in higher than forecast on a monthly basis, but Wall Street still expects a rate cut at next week's Fed meeting.
-
Four Clever and Tax-Efficient Ways to Ditch Concentrated Stock Holdings, From a Financial PlannerHolding too much of one company's stock can put your financial future at risk. Here are four ways you can strategically unwind such positions without triggering a massive tax bill.
