Deutsche Bank On Costco: October Sales To Be 'Solid'

Paul Trussell of Deutsche Bank expects

to stand out among retailers when the company reports its October sales metrics. “While retail remains volatile, we believe Costco has produced another solid mid-single-digit comp in October with strength in food sales, particularly fresh, and consistency in softlines and hardlines categories,” Trussel wrote. The analyst expects Costco to report core same-store-sales gains of 6.5 percent, roughly in-line with September's results and slightly higher than the 12 month average of 5.8 percent. Including gas, foreign exchange fluctuations and inflation impacts, the analyst expects a headline comp gain of 5.0 percent in September. Costco is expected to report traffic gains of around 4.0 percent in October, in-line with recent results. The average ticket is expected to be 50 basis points higher as modest food inflation is offset by lower gas prices. Shares are Buy rated with a $135 price target.