Costco Delivers Impressive March Comparable Sales Performance

Costco Wholesale Corporation COST continued with its decent comparable sales growth in March. The performance reflects Costco’s ability to attract value-conscious shoppers with its competitive pricing and high-quality offerings.

Decoding COST’s March Comps

COST’s comparable sales for March reflect its market strength. For the five weeks ended April 6, 2025, comparable sales in the United States, Canada and Other International markets grew 7.5%, 4.1% and 2.9%, respectively. Total company comparable sales rose 6.4%. This followed increases of 6.5% and 7.5% in February and January, respectively.

Thanks to the calendar shift of Easter, March included an extra shopping day compared to the same month last year, contributing roughly one and one-half percent to both total and comparable sales.

When adjusting for the effects of gasoline prices and foreign exchange rates, Costco’s comparable sales paint an impressive picture. In the United States, comparable sales, excluding these factors, rose 8.7% in March, while Canada and Other International markets posted gains of 10.6% and 9.9%, respectively. The company’s total comparable sales, excluding these external factors, increased 9.1%.

Costco's e-commerce comparable sales jumped 16.2% or 17.5% when adjusted for gasoline prices and foreign exchange fluctuations.

As a result, Costco's net sales for March increased 8.6% to $25.51 billion, up from $23.48 billion in the same period last year. This follows a sales improvement of 8.8% and 9.2% reported in February and January, respectively, reflecting a strong and consistent sales performance in the past few months.

Costco’s Consistent Growth Keeps Investors Optimistic

Costco’s resilient business model, centered around a membership-based structure, continues to be a major growth driver. The company’s high membership renewal rates, coupled with its efficient supply-chain management and bulk purchasing power, ensure competitive pricing and customer loyalty.

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have advanced 31.8% in the past year compared with the Retail – Discount Stores industry’s rise of 6.3%.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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