Costco (COST 0.07%) announced today that it had net sales of $8.2 billion in October, a 6% increase from the comparable four-week period last year. It also reported $18 billion in sales for the nine-week period ending Nov. 3, which was a $1 billion, or 6%, increase from the $17 billion reported during the similar period last year.
Costco also reported comparable sales gains, excluding negative impacts from gasoline price deflation and foreign exchange, of 6% for both the four and nine-week periods ending Nov. 3. Including these negative impacts, comparable sales were up 3% for both the four and nine-week periods.
David Sherwood, Costco's director of finance and investor relations, noted the strongest gains in the U.S. were seen in the Southeast, Midwest, and Texas markets. Internationally, the countries with the strongest comparable sales gains were Canada, Mexico, and Taiwan. Sherwood also noted that comparable traffic at all stores was up 6%.
These gains in comparable sales bested the increases seen in September, when comparable sales growth over the five-week period was 5%, and matched the 6% gains seen in August. In addition, Costco opened four stores in the month of October, and its total store count now stands at 642.