Shares in US retail titan Costco Wholesale (COST:NASDAQ) have been on an astonishing run, not just over the last 12 months but for several years before that and the shares are now trading at all-time highs.

The company has consistently reported earnings ahead of expectations in recent quarters and, given the elevated share price, it may need to do so again if it is to sustain its red-hot momentum when it posts numbers for its fiscal first quarter on 12 December. The shares currently trade at nearly 50 times 2025 consensus forecast earnings.

The business operates a chain of membership-only, warehouse-style retail stores across the US, Asia and Europe, and also has an accompanying e-commerce website.

By selling a limited range of cheap items, Costco has demonstrated its ability to pass on price increases to the customer and makes additional money through the annual membership fee.

Areas of focus when the market digests its latest earnings release are likely to include revenue performance, which came in just short of expectations for the year to 31 August.

Another facet of the results which is likely to be under the microscope is e-commerce performance, after online sales saw a recent rebound following a fallow period in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic. 

US UPDATES OVER THE NEXT 7 DAYS

QUARTERLY RESULTS

6 Dec: Genesco, Johnson Outdoors, Kirklands, SigmaTron

9 Dec: MongoDB

10 Dec: AutoZone

11 Dec: Adobe, Lennar, Nordson

12 Dec: Broadcom, Costco, Oracle

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