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Costco making a comeback in certain areas, posts strong Q3 results

Retailer sees discretionary sales pick up as inflation calms

Bill Wilson, Senior editor at Supermarket News

May 31, 2024

1 Min Read
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Costco

Costco CEO Ron Vachris has barely warmed up his seat as the head of operations, but he was sitting comfortably during his first earnings call late Thursday.

Costco beat third quarter estimates as net sales were 9.1% better year over year at $57.39 billion. In the U.S., comparable sales increased 6.2% vs. Q3 2023 and ecommerce experienced a 20.7% jump.

Vachris said consumables were a big win for the retailer during the third quarter as food continued to be a solid seller.

Discretionary sales also started making a comeback as inflation cooled. Toys, tires, lawn and garden, and health and beauty aids led the way during the third quarter.

Wall Street, however, has been struggling as of late and Costco’s stock was down just over 2% during opening trading on Friday.

Net income for the quarter was $1.68 billion, which is an over $300 million bump year over year.

Membership fees pulled in $1.12 billion, which is a 7.6% increase vs. third quarter 2023.

Costco also expanded its partnership with Uber Grocery in the U.S. and in Canada.

Over a 36-week span, net sales have increased 7.0% year over year to $171.44 billion. U.S. comparable sales rose 4.1% year over year.

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About the Author

Bill Wilson

Senior editor at Supermarket News

Bill Wilson is the senior editor at Supermarket News, covering all things grocery and retail. He has been a journalist in the B2B industry for 25 years. He has received two Robert F. Boger awards for his work as a journalist in the infrastructure industry and has over 25 editorial awards total in his career. He graduated cum laude from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale with a major in broadcast communications.

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