ISSAQUAH, Wash., Sept. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Costco Wholesale Corporation (“Costco” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: COST) today announced its operating results for the 16-week fourth quarter and the 52-week fiscal year ended September 1, 2024.
For the 16-week fourth quarter, the Company reported net sales of $78.2 billion, an increase of 1.0 percent compared to net sales of $77.4 billion in the 17-week fourth quarter of fiscal year 2023. For the 52-week fiscal year, the Company reported net sales of $249.6 billion, an increase of 5.0 percent from $237.7 billion reported in the 53-week fiscal year 2023.
The following comparable sales data reflect comparable locations year-over-year and comparable retail weeks.
Comparable sales were as follows:
| 16 Weeks | 16 Weeks | 52 Weeks | 52 Weeks | ||||
| Adjusted* | Adjusted* | ||||||
| U.S. | 5.3% | 6.3% | 4.5% | 5.0% | |||
| Canada | 5.5% | 7.9% | 7.0% | 8.1% | |||
| Other International | 5.7% | 9.3% | 8.1% | 8.4% | |||
| Total Company | 5.4% | 6.9% | 5.3% | 5.9% | |||
| E-commerce | 18.9% | 19.5% | 16.1% | 16.2% |
*Excluding the impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange.
Net income for the 16-week fourth quarter was $2.354 billion, $5.29 per diluted share, compared to $2.160 billion, $4.86 per diluted share, in the 17-week fourth quarter last year. This year’s results included a net non-recurring tax benefit of $63 million, $0.14 per diluted share, related to a transfer pricing settlement, and true-ups of tax reserves.
Net income for the 52-week fiscal year was $7.367 billion, $16.56 per diluted share, compared to $6.292 billion, $14.16 per diluted share, in the 53-week prior year.
Costco currently operates 891 warehouses, including 614 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 108 in Canada, 40 in Mexico, 35 in Japan, 29 in the United Kingdom, 19 in Korea, 15 in Australia, 14 in Taiwan, seven in China, five in Spain, two in France, and one each in Iceland, New Zealand and Sweden. Costco also operates e-commerce sites in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Mexico, Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Australia.
A conference call to discuss these results is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. (PT) today, September 26, 2024, and will be available via a webcast on investor.costco.com (click “Events & Presentations”).
Certain statements contained in this document and the pre-recorded message constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For these purposes, forward-looking statements are statements that address activities, events, conditions or developments that the Company expects or anticipates may occur in the future. In some cases forward-looking statements can be identified because they contain words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “likely,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would,” or similar expressions and the negatives of those terms. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual events, results or performance to differ materially from those indicated by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, domestic and international economic conditions, including exchange rates, inflation or deflation, the effects of competition and regulation, uncertainties in the financial markets, consumer and small business spending patterns and debt levels, breaches of security or privacy of member or business information, conditions affecting the acquisition, development, ownership or use of real estate, capital spending, actions of vendors, rising costs associated with employees (generally including health-care costs and wages), energy and certain commodities, geopolitical conditions (including tariffs), the ability to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting, regulatory and other impacts related to climate change, public-health related factors, and other risks identified from time to time in the Company’s public statements and reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and the Company does not undertake to update these statements, except as required by law. Comparable sales and comparable sales excluding impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange are intended as supplemental information and are not a substitute for net sales presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP.
| CONTACTS: | Costco Wholesale Corporation |
| David Sherwood, 425/313-8239 | |
| Josh Dahmen, 425/313-8254 | |
| Andrew Yoon, 425/313-6305 | |
COST-Earn
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORPORATION
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(dollars in millions, except per share data) (unaudited)
| 16 Weeks Ended | 17 Weeks Ended | 52 Weeks Ended | 53 Weeks Ended | ||||||||||||
| September 1, 2024 | September 3, 2023 | September 1, 2024 | September 3, 2023 | ||||||||||||
| REVENUE | |||||||||||||||
| Net sales | $ | 78,185 | $ | 77,430 | $ | 249,625 | $ | 237,710 | |||||||
| Membership fees | 1,512 | 1,509 | 4,828 | 4,580 | |||||||||||
| Total revenue | 79,697 | 78,939 | 254,453 | 242,290 | |||||||||||
| OPERATING EXPENSES | |||||||||||||||
| Merchandise costs | 69,588 | 69,219 | 222,358 | 212,586 | |||||||||||
| Selling, general and administrative | 7,067 | 6,939 | 22,810 | 21,590 | |||||||||||
| Operating income | 3,042 | 2,781 | 9,285 | 8,114 | |||||||||||
| OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE) | |||||||||||||||
| Interest expense | (49 | ) | (56 | ) | (169 | ) | (160 | ) | |||||||
| Interest income and other, net | 120 | 238 | 624 | 533 | |||||||||||
| INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES | 3,113 | 2,963 | 9,740 | 8,487 | |||||||||||
| Provision for income taxes | 759 | 803 | 2,373 | 2,195 | |||||||||||
| NET INCOME | $ | 2,354 | $ | 2,160 | $ | 7,367 | $ | 6,292 | |||||||
| NET INCOME PER COMMON SHARE: | |||||||||||||||
| Basic | $ | 5.30 | $ | 4.87 | $ | 16.59 | $ | 14.18 | |||||||
| Diluted | $ | 5.29 | $ | 4.86 | $ | 16.56 | $ | 14.16 | |||||||
| Shares used in calculation (000’s): | |||||||||||||||
| Basic | 444,013 | 443,876 | 443,914 | 443,854 | |||||||||||
| Diluted | 444,977 | 444,445 | 444,759 | 444,452 | |||||||||||
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORPORATION
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(amounts in millions, except par value and share data) (unaudited)
Subject to Reclassification
| September 1, 2024 | September 3, 2023 | ||||||||
| ASSETS | |||||||||
| CURRENT ASSETS | |||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 9,906 | $ | 13,700 | |||||
| Short-term investments | 1,238 | 1,534 | |||||||
| Receivables, net | 2,721 | 2,285 | |||||||
| Merchandise inventories | 18,647 | 16,651 | |||||||
| Other current assets | 1,734 | 1,709 | |||||||
| Total current assets | 34,246 | 35,879 | |||||||
| OTHER ASSETS | |||||||||
| Property and equipment, net | 29,032 | 26,684 | |||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 2,617 | 2,713 | |||||||
| Other long-term assets | 3,936 | 3,718 | |||||||
| TOTAL ASSETS | $ | 69,831 | $ | 68,994 | |||||
| LIABILITIES AND EQUITY | |||||||||
| CURRENT LIABILITIES | |||||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | 19,421 | $ | 17,483 | |||||
| Accrued salaries and benefits | 4,794 | 4,278 | |||||||
| Accrued member rewards | 2,435 | 2,150 | |||||||
| Deferred membership fees | 2,501 | 2,337 | |||||||
| Current portion of long-term debt | 103 | 1,081 | |||||||
| Other current liabilities | 6,210 | 6,254 | |||||||
| Total current liabilities | 35,464 | 33,583 | |||||||
| OTHER LIABILITIES | |||||||||
| Long-term debt, excluding current portion | 5,794 | 5,377 | |||||||
| Long-term operating lease liabilities | 2,375 | 2,426 | |||||||
| Other long-term liabilities | 2,576 | 2,550 | |||||||
| TOTAL LIABILITIES | 46,209 | 43,936 | |||||||
| COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES | |||||||||
| EQUITY | |||||||||
| Preferred stock $0.005 par value; 100,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding | — | — | |||||||
| Common stock $0.005 par value; 900,000,000 shares authorized; 443,126,000 and 442,793,000 shares issued and outstanding | 2 | 2 | |||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | 7,829 | 7,340 | |||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive loss | (1,828 | ) | (1,805 | ) | |||||
| Retained earnings | 17,619 | 19,521 | |||||||
| TOTAL EQUITY | 23,622 | 25,058 | |||||||
| TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY | $ | 69,831 | $ | 68,994 | |||||
COSTCO WHOLESALE CORPORATION
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(amounts in millions) (unaudited)
Subject to Reclassification
| 52 Weeks Ended | 53 Weeks Ended | ||||||
| September 1, 2024 | September 3, 2023 | ||||||
| CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES | |||||||
| Net income | $ | 7,367 | $ | 6,292 | |||
| Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: | |||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 2,237 | 2,077 | |||||
| Non-cash lease expense | 315 | 412 | |||||
| Stock-based compensation | 818 | 774 | |||||
| Impairment of assets and other non-cash operating activities, net | (9 | ) | 495 | ||||
| Changes in working capital | 611 | 1,018 | |||||
| Net cash provided by operating activities | 11,339 | 11,068 | |||||
| CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES | |||||||
| Purchases of short-term investments | (1,470 | ) | (1,622 | ) | |||
| Maturities and sales of short-term investments | 1,790 | 937 | |||||
| Additions to property and equipment | (4,710 | ) | (4,323 | ) | |||
| Other investing activities, net | (19 | ) | 36 | ||||
| Net cash used in investing activities | (4,409 | ) | (4,972 | ) | |||
| CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES | |||||||
| Repayments of short-term borrowings | (920 | ) | (935 | ) | |||
| Proceeds from short-term borrowings | 928 | 917 | |||||
| Repayments of long-term debt | (1,077 | ) | (75 | ) | |||
| Proceeds from issuance of long-term debt | 498 | — | |||||
| Tax withholdings on stock-based awards | (315 | ) | (303 | ) | |||
| Repurchases of common stock | (700 | ) | (676 | ) | |||
| Cash dividend payments | (9,041 | ) | (1,251 | ) | |||
| Financing lease payments | (136 | ) | (291 | ) | |||
| Other financing activities, net | (1 | ) | — | ||||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (10,764 | ) | (2,614 | ) | |||
| EFFECT OF EXCHANGE RATE CHANGES ON CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS | 40 | 15 | |||||
| Net change in cash and cash equivalents | (3,794 | ) | 3,497 | ||||
| CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS BEGINNING OF YEAR | 13,700 | 10,203 | |||||
| CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS END OF YEAR | $ | 9,906 | $ | 13,700 | |||
