Good morning investors!

Every weekend we publish our “Earnings Recap” — an in-depth summary of the earnings reports for stocks that we cover.

Earnings season is winding down but three of the stocks we cover reported quarterly results this week — here is the list of companies we focused on:

• Costco, Micron and AutoZone

Let’s dive in.

Costco (COST)

Costco's fiscal fourth quarter results were mixed as the company missed Wall Street’s revenue expectations.

The company posted net income of $2.4 billion, or $5.29 per share, surpassing analyst expectations of $5.08 per share, and up 9% from $4.86 in Q4 2023. However, revenue rose just 1% to $79.69 billion, falling short of the forecasted $79.91 billion.

Comparable sales grew 5.4%, slightly below the 5.7% forecast. U.S. same-store sales increased by 5.3%, and e-commerce sales jumped 19.5%, narrowly missing Wall Street's 19.63% target.

Membership fee revenue was $1.51 billion, under the $1.55 billion expectation. Costco recently raised membership prices, hiking the price of its Gold Star membership by $5 to $65, while increasing the Executive membership by $10 to $130. 

Costco opened 14 new warehouses in the quarter, with 10 in the U.S., bringing its total to 891 worldwide.

The company did not offer any future guidance in the report.

COST shares are -2.8% so far this week.

Micron (MU)

Micron Technology exceeded Wall Street expectations in its latest earnings report, sending its share price higher.

The company posted $7.75 billion in revenue, a 93% increase from last year and higher than the $7.66 billion forecasted by analysts. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $1.18, surpassing estimates of $1.11.

Strong demand for AI-related chips, especially in data centers, drove sales growth. Networking revenue increased 152% from last year to $3.1 billion while storage revenue rose 127% to $1.7 billion.

Looking ahead, Micron expects record revenue of around $8.7 billion for the first quarter, above analysts' estimate of $8.28 billion, and projects a gross margin increase to 39.5%. The company also forecasted adjusted earnings of $1.74 per share, ahead of Wall Street's $1.65 estimate.

MU shares are +18.5% so far this week.

AutoZone (AZO)

AutoZone reported weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter profits, impacted by inflationary pressures.

Net income rose to $902.2 million, or $51.58 per share, falling short of analysts’ expectations of $53.53 per share. Revenue increased 9% to $6.2 billion, but this also missed estimates.

Domestic commercial sales grew to $1.66 billion, up from $1.50 billion a year ago, while same-store sales saw a modest 0.2% increase. Gross profit climbed to $3.26 billion, and operating profit rose 5.7% to $1.29 billion. 

Inventory increased 6.8%, reaching $837,000 per store.

The company did not provide future guidance.

AZO shares are +5.3% so far this week.

The Investor’s Edge Discord is a HUGE benefit of being a subscriber - don’t miss out!

Before you go, don’t forget to join our our Discord server!

If you are only reading the newsletter, you are only getting a fraction of the benefits of being an Edge subscriber. Here’s what you’re missing in the Discord:

🗨️ Chat rooms: Connect with fellow investors, swap ideas, and engage in lively discussions about stocks and market trends—all while rubbing virtual elbows with both Mark and Chris.

📊 Earnings / Economic reports: No more waiting for our newsletters to hit your inboxes - see earnings results and economic data as they are released. And more importantly, get our reactions and insights immediately.

🚨Trade Alerts (Edge+ members): Get exclusive, behind-the-scenes access to our trades as they happen. It's like having a front-row seat to our investment decisions!

Join us on Discord and let's level up our investing game together. The future of trading awaits—and you're invited to be a part of it! 🌟

Thank you for reading this week’s Earnings Recap.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, be sure to give this a LIKE and LEAVE US A COMMENT. You can share your thoughts on the earnings, let us know that you appreciate the content or even just say hello.

Thank you, and until next time investors!

Mark & Chris

The Investor’s Edge

Disclosure

This is not investing advice. It is very important that you do your own research and make investments based on your own personal circumstances, preferences, goals and risk tolerance.