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Costco (COST) Ascends While Market Falls: Some Facts to Note

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The most recent trading session ended with Costco (COST - Free Report) standing at $892.51, reflecting a +1.51% shift from the previouse trading day's closing. The stock's performance was ahead of the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.32%. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.16%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.85%.

The the stock of warehouse club operator has risen by 7.54% in the past month, leading the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 2.72% and the S&P 500's gain of 1.52%.

Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Costco in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to go public on September 26, 2024. On that day, Costco is projected to report earnings of $5.02 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 3.29%. In the meantime, our current consensus estimate forecasts the revenue to be $80.07 billion, indicating a 1.44% growth compared to the corresponding quarter of the prior year.

For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $16.27 per share and a revenue of $254.55 billion, signifying shifts of +10.76% and +5.06%, respectively, from the last year.

Investors should also take note of any recent adjustments to analyst estimates for Costco. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. To take advantage of this, we've established the Zacks Rank, an exclusive model that considers these estimated changes and delivers an operational rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.1% higher within the past month. At present, Costco boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Looking at valuation, Costco is presently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 54.03. This indicates a premium in contrast to its industry's Forward P/E of 22.43.

One should further note that COST currently holds a PEG ratio of 5.79. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. Retail - Discount Stores stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 2.36 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Retail - Discount Stores industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 179, finds itself in the bottom 30% echelons of all 250+ industries.

The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.


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