Costco posts strong sales growth

Costco Wholesale reported strong first-quarter results on Thursday, beating Wall Street’s expectations. 

Revenue rose to $67.31 billion, and sales were up 8.2% from last year. Earnings reached $4.50 per share, higher than the $4.27 expected. Membership fees also climbed to $1.33 billion, showing members continue to renew.

Online sales jumped 20.5%, with app traffic up 48%, and same-day delivery through Instacart, Uber, and DoorDash grew even faster. 

Despite high inflation and a weak labor market, Black Friday was a record day, with US online orders topping $250 million.

Costco opened eight new warehouses globally, bringing its total to 921, and attracted more younger members, increasing total membership to 81.4 million. 

Non-food sales, including pharmacy, gold, electronics, and apparel, grew strongly. 

Even with the strong results, Costco’s stock slipped about 0.5% after hours. The company is also fighting the Trump administration in court to recover tariffs it paid this year.