Costco shares inch lower premarket after Q4 revenue falls short of estimates

Investing.com -- Costco (NASDAQ:COST ) reported fiscal fourth-quarter revenue that fell short of analyst estimates, as a dip in spending on big-ticket items and lower gasoline prices weighed on the membership-only warehouse chain.

Shares in the company dipped by 1.4% in premarked US trading in the wake of the report. They have gained a roughly 38.5% so far this year.

Speaking to analysts following the results, chief financial officer Gary Millerchip noted that there have been "signs that the consumer is being very choiceful in how they're spending their dollars," adding that shoppers are increasingly on the lookout for bargains on items like televisions and home appliances.

Prices for gas also climbed 5.4% during the 16-week period ending on Sept. 1, a slower rate than the 6.6% uptick in the prior quarter.

Meanwhile, ecommerce sales jumped by 18.9%, decelerating from 20.7% in the previous quarter, despite efforts by Costco to bolster sales activity both online and through its mobile app.

Revenue rose by almost 1% to $79.69 billion, below Wall Street estimates of $79.93 billion, although net income of $5.29 per share topped expectations.

Millerchip flagged that an increase in its annual membership fee by $5 to $65 for its "Gold Star" members, and up to $130 from $120 for its executive members, will have a "minimal impact" on Costco's returns early in its current fiscal year. Instead, the changes, which took effect on Sept. 1, will reap a benefit in the back half of the 52-week period and into its 2026 fiscal year, he said.

"[A]s you think about our cadence of our earnings growth across [20]25, it's likely to be less linear than you would probably typically expect," Millerchip added.

In a note to clients, analysts at Morgan Stanley praised Costco's latest results, saying they "live up to its retail leading valuation" and give the company "strong" momentum heading to its new fiscal year.

(Yasin Ebrahim and Reuters contributed reporting.)

Source: Investing.com