Costco reports strong Q1, with domestics a standout

The magic number for Costco Wholesale Corporation in its first quarter was seven.

The warehouse club chain, which operates 474 units in the United States, reported a 7% increase in net sales during the 12-week period, ended Nov. 23, to $26.28 billion from $24.47 billion last year.

And excluding negative impacts from gasoline price deflation and foreign exchange. Costco’s comps also increased by 7% evenly across its business, in the U.S., internationally and for the total company.

A “standout” in soft lines was domestics, said evp and cfo Richard Galanti during the company’s earnings call this morning.

Net income for the quarter jumped 16.7% to $496 million, or $1.12 per diluted share, compared to $425 million, or $0.96 per diluted share, last year.

E-commerce sales rose 20%, and comprised about 3% of total sales.

The company is layering in new skus to its website offering as it sees continued growth in this segment of its business.

Source: Home & Textiles Today