Higher Fuel Prices Boost Costco Same-Store Sales

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By Trey Thoelcke Published
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Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) reported that for August, comparable-store sales gained 6% year-over-year, and that its total sales increased 8% to $7.4 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had a consensus estimate of same-store sales growth of 4.5% for the month.

The same-store sales figure reflects increases of 7% in the United States and 4% internationally, Costco said. Excluding higher prices for gasoline and the negative effects of foreign-currency translations, the the largest warehouse club operator said August sales in stores open for at least a year increased 6%.

In addition, Costco said it will open a new warehouse in each of Taiwan and Korea this week. The retailer plans to open as many as 15 new warehouses between September 3, the beginning of its fiscal year 2013, and the end of calendar year 2012.

Costco shares are less than 1% shy of the 52-week high of $97.76, and nearly 15% higher year to date. But shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), which operates the competing Sam’s Club warehouse chain, are up more than 20% year to date.

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About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.

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