Costco Profit Up 24 Percent, Shares Rise  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Costco Wholesale Corp. &lt;A HREF="http://www.investor.reuters.com/FullQuote.aspx?ticker=COST.O target=/stocks/quickinfo/fullquote"&gt;COST.O&lt;/A&gt;  reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit and a healthy  rise in September sales on Thursday, sending its shares up 2  percent in pre-market trading.