Warehouse club retailer Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST) released its fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year results yesterday after market close, delivering several positive surprises. Riding the tailwinds of COVID-19's effects, rather than sustaining damage from them, Costco outperformed on a year-over-year basis. Costco's earnings per share for Q4 amounted to a diluted $3.13 per share, 9.8% higher than the $2.85 analyst estimate reported by Zacks Equity Research. Revenue for the quarter also beat analyst predictions, coming in 1.75% ahead of the Wall Street figure of $53.38 billion. Image source: Getty Images. In full-year terms, Costco also outstripped its previous-year performance. Diluted EPS rose 9.2% from $8.26 in fiscal year 2019 to $9.02 in fiscal 2020. Net sales, or revenue, closely traced these gains, surging 9.3% from $149.35 billion to $163.22 billion. Adjusted comparable sales, or comps, also increased sharply for both Q4, at 14.1% year over year, and full-year fiscal 2020, at 9.2% year over year. E-commerce, predictably, skyrocketed too, soaring 91.3% for the quarter and 50.1% for the year. The coronavirus pandemic was a mixed blessing for the retailer's bottom line, however. The company racked up $281 million in pre-tax Q4 expenses in "premium wages and sanitation costs." While the figures are quite positive, the durability of Costco's gains depends in part on its success in attracting subscribers and retaining them long-term. According to CFO Richard Galanti during the Q4 conference call, renewal rates remained steady at a robust 91% and membership fee income edged upward by $56 million, while paid members grew by 1.3 million -- overall upbeat figures for investors. 10 stocks we like better than Costco WholesaleWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Costco Wholesale wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of September 24, 2020 Rhian Hunt has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Source