What to Expect When Costco Reports

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) is scheduled to release its fiscal fourth-quarter financial results after the markets close on Thursday. The consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters call for $2.36 in earnings per share (EPS) and $44.27 billion in revenue, while in the same period of last year the company posted $2.08 in EPS and $42.3 billion in revenue.

For the past several years, Costco has teamed up with General Motors to offer Costco club members special pricing on new GM vehicles through the Costco Auto Program. The 2018 holiday season event began Tuesday, October 2 and runs through January 2, 2019. The Costco Auto Program posted a sales increase of 49% year over year in 2017.

In addition to GM Supplier Pricing and “compatible” currently available GM incentives (for an unspecified limited time), Costco members who purchase or lease a new model year 2019 vehicle and fill out a survey form will receive a Costco Cash Card. Executive members receive a cash card valued at $700 while Gold Star and Business members get a card valued at $300. Vehicles available this year include 2018 and 2019 Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac cars and light trucks.

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Costco members who purchase or lease a new model year 2018 vehicle receive a $500 Costco Member-only incentive that can be combined with other “compatible” GM incentives.

Overall, Costco has outperformed the broad markets, with the stock up about 41% in the past 52 weeks. In just 2018 alone, the stock is up 25%.

A few analysts weighed in on Costco ahead of the report:

• JPMorgan has an Overweight rating and a $255 price target.
• Barclays has an Equal Weight rating with a $240 price target.
• Wells Fargo has a Market Perform rating and a $235 price target.
• Raymond James has an Outperform rating with a $252 target.
• BMO Capital Markets has a Buy rating and a $260 target price.
• Stifel has a Buy rating with a $245 price target.

Shares of Costco were last seen trading at $232.16, with a consensus analyst price target of $241.48 and a 52-week range of $154.11 to $245.16.

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