Costco tops profit estimate in quarter, but sales disappoint

Costco’s profit in its third quarter exceeded Wall Street expectations, though total sales fell short.

For the quarter ending May 8, the warehouse giant reported earnings per share of $1.24, up from $1.17 a year ago. Wall Street analysts had expected earnings per share of $1.22.

The profit of $545 million was up 5.6 percent from the same quarter last year.

Total sales reached $26.77 billion, up 2.6 percent from a year earlier. Analysts had expected sales of $27.07 billion.

Comparable sales — sales in stores open at least a year — remained flat over the quarter in the U.S. while rising 1 percent in Canada and declining 2 percent in all other countries where Costco operates. Overall company comparable sales were flat for the quarter.

The Seattle Times

This story was originally published May 26, 2016 at 2:27 PM with the headline "Costco tops profit estimate in quarter, but sales disappoint."