Costco beats quarterly sales estimates due to resilient holiday demand

(Reuters) – Costco Wholesale easily beat Wall Street’s first-quarter sales expectations on Thursday as more Americans turned to the members-only retail chain to shop for everything from groceries to home furnishings for the holiday season.

Shares of the company rose 1.4% in extended trading.

The retailer, which sells products in larger packs and offers big deals on items like bread and eggs for as little as $3, has seen picky consumers visit its stores to shop for their holiday needs, including home furnishings and jewelry.

The holiday shopping season in 2024 will be shorter than in previous years, with only 26 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas. This season, retailers in the United States introduced discounts and promotions as early as October to beat the competition and attract picky customers.

Costco ran pre-Black Friday sales in November, trying to avoid a drop in first-quarter sales growth from late Thanksgiving weekend this year by offering a $179 LG UltraGear gaming monitor that was $70 Dollars less than the original price, and JBL headphones for a 30% discount for $69.99.

The company’s quarterly revenue rose to $62.15 billion from $57.80 billion a year ago. Analysts on average expected $62.08 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)