Daily newsletter · Fri 25 Sep 2026
Costco's headline sales number had a tank of petrol in it
Costco reported after Thursday's close in New York. Net sales rose 11.2% to US$93.9 billion in the 16 weeks to 30 August, and American same-store sales grew 10.7%. Take out petrol prices and currency, and that 10.7% becomes 7.2%.
Petrol is most of the gap. The company runs pumps at most of its 939 warehouses and sells below the servo down the road. When crude rises, the dollars going through those pumps rise too, and the comparable sales line rises with them.
The membership engine did the real work. Fee income was US$1.85 billion for the quarter and US$5.91 billion for the year, up 11%. Earnings came in at US$6.75 a share, 15 US cents of it a refund of tariffs already paid.
The fee increase announced in September 2024 has now almost finished flowing through the numbers. From here that line grows when Costco signs up members or moves them to the executive tier, rather than because the price went up two years ago.
keep the adjusted figures. Total company comparable sales were 9.4% as reported and 6.7% once petrol and currency come out. Both are good numbers. Only one of them survives a cheaper barrel of oil.
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