Costco Falls on Concerns Over Membership Renewals, Margins
- Shares decline after warehouse club posts quarterly earnings
- The encroachment of Amazon on its turf has brought jitters
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Costco Wholesale Corp.’s better-than-projected results still weren’t enough to please investors, who instead zeroed in on a drop in membership renewal rates and narrowed margins.
The shares fell as much as 5.9 percent, the most in more than three months, despite the warehouse retailer posting fourth-quarter sales and earnings that topped analysts’ estimates. Even as the company’s growth rate dwarfs those of many retailers, Costco’s margins show it isn’t immune to the fierce competition that is ravaging the grocery industry.