Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) is set to report its first-quarter earnings after the closing bell on Thursday, December 11, and Wall Street is expecting another solid quarter from the membership warehouse giant.
The consensus view has the Issaquah, Washington-based retailer posting earnings of $4.28 per share, with quarterly revenue expected to reach $67.17 billion. That would represent a healthy jump from the $62.15 billion Costco brought in during the same period last year.
The company has built an impressive track record when it comes to exceeding expectations, having beaten analyst revenue estimates for three straight quarters. Over the last 10 quarters, Costco has surpassed revenue forecasts six times.
Shares of Costco (COST) closed down 1.6% at $874.41 on Wednesday ahead of the earnings announcement.
What the Top Analysts Are Saying
Several highly accurate analysts have recently updated their views on Costco, offering insight into where Wall Street's sharpest minds think the stock is headed:
Telsey Advisory Group's Joseph Feldman, who has a 66% accuracy rate, maintained his Outperform rating and kept his price target at $1,100 on December 4.
DA Davidson analyst Michael Baker, boasting a 77% accuracy rate, maintained a Neutral stance with a $1,000 price target, also on December 4.
JP Morgan's Christopher Horvers, with a 73% accuracy rate, kept his Overweight rating but lowered his price target from $1,050 to $1,025 on November 6.
Oppenheimer analyst Rupesh Parikh, who has a 72% accuracy rate, maintained his Outperform rating but cut his price target from $1,130 to $1,050 on November 3.
BTIG's Robert Drbul initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $1,115 price target on October 15. This analyst carries a 66% accuracy rate.
The recent price target adjustments from some analysts suggest a bit of caution creeping into Wall Street's thinking, even as most maintain bullish ratings on the stock. With the earnings report just hours away, investors will soon see whether Costco can continue its streak of beating expectations.
