Costco Profit Climbs 29% In The Second Quarter

Costco Wholesale Corp. said Thursday net profit for its fiscal second quarter climbed 29% to $598 million, from $463 million in the same quarter last year. On a per-share basis, income rose to $1.35 from $1.05 a year ago. Net sales for the quarter increased 4% to $26.87 billion, while total revenue came in at $27.45 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected earnings of $1.18 per share on sales of $27.61 billion. Same-store sales for Costco climbed 2% in the quarter in total and rose 4% in the U.S. Excluding the negative impact from fuel prices and foreign exchange, total and U.S. sales both jumped 8%. In February, total sales rose 1%, but 8% when adjusted for fuel and currencies.