Costco (COST) Q4 FY2026 earnings release — 8-K exhibit 99.1

Filed as a clipping because earnings-ingest process-filing returned HTTP 404 on accession 0000909832-26-000084. The 8-K body and Exhibit 99.1 press release are reproduced from the public StockTitan EDGAR mirror of that filing. GlobeNewswire carried the same release. No free Motley Fool full-call transcript was found (Seeking Alpha has a paywalled transcript). Treat numbers as the issuer's 99.1, not a transcript.

Summary

Costco reported the 16-week fourth quarter and 52-week fiscal year ended August 30, 2026. Net sales $93.873 billion (+11.2%); diluted EPS $6.75 vs $5.87, including a non-recurring $0.15 benefit from IEEPA tariff refunds received in the quarter, less partial reinvestment in member values. Excluding that benefit, net income grew 12.3% and EPS 12.4%. Total-company comps +9.4% (+6.7% excluding gasoline prices and FX). Digitally-enabled comps +19.5%. Worldwide membership renewal 89.8%. Kirkland everyday-low-price cuts (walnuts $13.79→$9.99, etc.) are the stated reinvestment of the tariff refund — retailer-captured private label, not a listed co-packer. Do not graduate WMT/COST. Do not mint a new consumer chain.

Article

Accession 0000909832-26-000084. Form 8-K dated September 24, 2026. Items 2.02 and 9.01. Signed Gary Millerchip, EVP and CFO.

Item 2.02: On September 24, 2026, the Company issued a press release containing its operating results for the 16-week fourth quarter and the 52-week fiscal year, ended August 30, 2026. A copy of the press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1. In addition, a copy of the Company's earnings release supplement for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026 is attached as Exhibit 99.2.

Exhibit 99.1 (issuer press release)

COSTCO WHOLESALE CORPORATION REPORTS FOURTH QUARTER AND FISCAL YEAR 2026 OPERATING RESULTS

ISSAQUAH, Wash., September 24, 2026 - Costco Wholesale Corporation ("Costco" or the "Company") (Nasdaq: COST) today announced its operating results for the 16-week fourth quarter and the 52-week fiscal year ended August 30, 2026.

Net sales for the quarter increased 11.2 percent, to $93.9 billion, from $84.4 billion last year. Net sales for the fiscal year increased 10.1 percent, to $297.2 billion, from $269.9 billion last year.

Comparable sales for the fourth quarter and fiscal year were as follows:

*Excluding the impacts from changes in gasoline prices and foreign exchange.

Net income for the fourth quarter was $2.998 billion, $6.75 per diluted share, compared to $2.610 billion, $5.87 per diluted share, last year. This year's fourth quarter was positively impacted by a non-recurring benefit of $0.15 per diluted share from IEEPA tariff refunds received in the quarter, less partial reinvestment of those refunds in increased member values. Net income for the fiscal year was $9.226 billion, $20.76 per diluted share, compared to $8.099 billion, $18.21 per diluted share, last year.

Costco currently operates 939 warehouses, including 647 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 115 in Canada, 43 in Mexico, 37 in Japan, 29 in the United Kingdom, 20 in Korea, 15 in Australia, 14 in Taiwan, seven in China, five in Spain, three in France, two in Sweden, and one each in Iceland, and New Zealand.

A conference call to discuss these results is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. (PT) today, September 24, 2026, and will be available via a webcast on investor.costco.com.

Selected 99.1 financials (unaudited, dollars in millions except per share)

16 weeks ended August 30, 2026 vs August 31, 2025:

• Net sales: $93,873 vs $84,432
• Membership fees: $1,850 vs $1,724
• Total revenue: $95,723 vs $86,156
• Merchandise costs: $83,531 vs $75,037
• SG&A: $8,391 vs $7,778
• Operating income: $3,801 vs $3,341
• Net income: $2,998 vs $2,610
• Diluted EPS: $6.75 vs $5.87
• Diluted shares (000's): 444,364 vs 444,706

52 weeks: net sales $297,247 vs $269,912; net income $9,226 vs $8,099; diluted EPS $20.76 vs $18.21. Operating cash flow $15,825 vs $13,335. Cash and equivalents $20,207 vs $14,161 at year-end. Capex $6,435 vs $5,498. Current portion of long-term debt $2,248 vs $75.

Exhibit 99.2 supplement (selected)

• Comparable traffic +3.3%; comparable ticket +5.9%; adjusted comparable ticket +3.3%
• Worldwide membership renewal rate 89.8%; 150.4 million total cardholders (+3.6%); 42.3 million executive memberships; 84.1 million paid memberships (+3.8%); US/CN renewal 92.3%; executive members 75.6% of sales
• Gross margin 11.02% (−11 bps vs Q4 FY25; +20 bps ex-gas). Core −32 bps reported / −9 bps ex-gas. LIFO −11 / −12 bps. "Other" +9 bps related to IEEPA tariff refunds less partial reinvestment.
• SG&A 8.94% (+27 bps; +2 bps ex-gas)
• Kirkland everyday-low-price cuts cited as new member values: KS Walnuts $13.79 to $9.99; KS Colombian whole bean $21.99 to $19.99; KS Dry Facial Towel $19.99 to $18.99; KS Coarse Black Pepper $6.99 to $5.99
• Warehouses: 939 at FY26 end (647 US); FY27 estimated 967
• Digital top growth categories: Pharmacy, Home Furnishings, Small Electrics, Hardware, Housewares, Domestics

What this is not

• Not a listed private-label manufacturer. Kirkland price cuts are retailer-captured. TreeHouse remains private. Same conversion bar as the consumer-trade-down hypothesis.
• Not a reason to rank COST or graduate WMT.
• Not a Motley Fool speaker-labeled transcript. Call was 5:00 p.m. ET September 24; free full transcript not found this morning.

Provenance

Method: earnings-ingest Mode B discovered COST 8-K 99.1 (accession 0000909832-26-000084, filed 2026-09-24) in the deferred list after the 8-ticker cap filled with repeating 404s; process-filing then 404'd the same accession (35th consecutive morning of EDGAR 99.1 404s on this host). Public 8-K + 99.1 recovered from StockTitan's EDGAR mirror.

Web sources:

• StockTitan COST 8-K + 99.1 — accession 0000909832-26-000084
• GlobeNewswire Costco Q4 FY2026 operating results — same 99.1 text