Thread by @pcordway

As a fan and student of all things Costco, or for anyone interested more broadly in business or agriculture, this is really, really interesting.

Costco's 100 Million Chickens Will Change the Face of Nebraska

civileats.com/2018/12/11/cos…

And speaking of $COST and the Midwest, I recently learned that the company entered the region more than 20 years ago but is just now making money in aggregate. Each store has a 4-5 year breakeven period, and the growth rate has been steady and substantial over 2+ decades.

Amazing to think about that long-term investment -- in a mature/low-growth industry, in a mature/low-growth region -- that is just now showing a return 20+ years later.

I also thought about it when recently reading the first annual report from 1985, published shortly after the IPO. Memberships were growing like crazy -- up ~3x in the preceding 24 months -- but results showed an operating loss due to the investment in new stores.

In early 1986 the stock was ~$2.50 (split-adj.) for a mkt cap of ~$135 mn, with net cash on the books.

FY 1985 sales were $370.8 mn. The business characteristics were clear and remarkably similar to today's.

Would I have had the brains to buy it? I'd like to say yes, but...