New York, May 22, 2026, 13:06 (EDT)
BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings shares fell sharply on Friday after investors looked past a quarterly earnings beat and focused on weaker growth in sales excluding gasoline at the membership warehouse chain.
That matters now because BJ’s is being judged on more than traffic. Gasoline can pull members onto its lots, but the stock move showed investors wanted clearer evidence that those visits were turning into bigger baskets inside the club.
BJ’s traded around $86 in early afternoon dealings, down more than 8% from its previous close of $94.43 and near its session low, while the S&P 500 was up 0.6% in early afternoon trading.
The company said total revenue rose 9.9% to $5.66 billion in the fiscal first quarter ended May 2. Net income fell 4.7% to $142.7 million, or $1.10 a diluted share, while membership-fee income climbed 9.9% to $132.4 million. Comparable-club sales — sales at stores open long enough to compare with a prior period — rose 6.3%, but only 1.5% when gasoline was stripped out.
The profit number was not the problem. Wall Street had expected earnings of $1.03 a share, and revenue also came in ahead of the $5.44 billion estimate cited by the Wall Street Journal.
Chief Executive Bob Eddy said BJ’s value offer “continued to resonate,” while Chief Financial Officer Laura Felice said fiscal 2026 guidance was “unchanged.” The company kept its outlook for adjusted earnings of $4.40 to $4.60 a share and comparable sales excluding gasoline up 2% to 3%. BJ’s Wholesale Club Newsroom
The rub was the sales mix. MarketWatch reported that core comparable sales excluding gasoline missed a 1.6% forecast and said gasoline drove more traffic without producing the broader in-club spending lift investors wanted; it also drew a contrast with Walmart, where fuel-linked members spent more across the business.
BJ’s competes in a narrow but tough corner of retail. In its latest annual filing, the company named Costco Wholesale and Walmart’s Sam’s Club as major warehouse-club competitors and said price was a key competitive factor, with larger rivals holding greater financial and marketing resources.
There were still signs of demand. Digitally enabled comparable sales rose 28%, and BJ’s opened one club and six gas stations in the quarter. The company also bought back 2.1 million shares for about $206.6 million, leaving roughly $545 million available under its repurchase program.
But the downside case is clear. If gasoline keeps carrying the headline sales figure while merchandise demand stays modest, BJ’s could face a less attractive mix at the same time it is spending on new clubs, labor, occupancy and distribution. That would leave less room for error against Costco and Sam’s Club.
The move came during a regular NYSE trading session ahead of the Memorial Day weekend; the exchange lists Monday, May 25, as a 2026 market holiday.
