NEW YORK, December 28, 2025, 20:18 ET — Market closed
- Costco shares last closed up 0.2% at $873.35.
- Investors are looking ahead to Costco’s December sales results on Jan. 7 after the U.S. close.
- U.S. stocks were little changed in thin post-holiday trade; Target jumped on an activist-stake report.
Costco Wholesale Corp (COST) shares ended Friday up 0.2% at $873.35 in thin post-Christmas trading.
The warehouse-club operator has a near-term holiday checkpoint on deck: Costco’s December sales results are scheduled for Jan. 7, after the regular U.S. close.
That matters because the update gives investors a timely read on holiday demand at a retailer built around value pricing and recurring membership fees, which help support profits when shoppers pull back.
Wall Street largely marked time on Friday, snapping a five-session rally with only marginal declines, as traders watched for a “Santa Claus rally” — the seasonal stretch covering the last five trading days of the year and the first two of the new one. Reuters
“We had a very strong five-day rally, so in a way we’re just simply catching our breath today after the holiday,” Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, said. Reuters
Retail shares were mixed, with Target jumping 3.1% after the Financial Times reported activist investor Toms Capital Investment Management had built a stake, Reuters reported.
Walmart edged up 0.1% and BJ’s Wholesale Club slipped 0.7% on the session, while Costco’s shares posted a small gain.
Costco traded between $868.51 and $877.00 on Friday, leaving the stock in the high-$860s to mid-$870s range heading into the final days of the year.
Costco’s investor relations calendar lists the December sales release for Jan. 7 at 1:15 p.m. PT, or 4:15 p.m. ET, which falls after the 4 p.m. regular-session close.
The monthly report typically includes net sales and comparable sales — sales at stores open at least a year — a closely watched gauge of underlying demand that strips out the impact of new locations.
Investors also have Costco’s fiscal second-quarter earnings call on the calendar for March 5 at 2 p.m. PT (5 p.m. ET), according to the company’s events schedule.
Before the next session, investors will monitor U.S. data that can shift expectations for interest rates and consumer spending. Monday’s calendar includes advance international trade in goods at 8:30 a.m. ET and the National Association of Realtors’ pending home sales index at 10 a.m. ET, the New York Fed’s economic indicators schedule shows.
A regional factory gauge from the Dallas Fed follows at 10:30 a.m. ET. Any surprise can ripple through retail names as traders recalibrate how resilient demand looks heading into 2026.
For Costco, the next clear catalyst is the Jan. 7 sales print, followed by the March 5 earnings call, with year-end liquidity expected to keep single-stock moves more sensitive to headline flow.
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