Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Sold by Silphium Asset Management Ltd

Silphium Asset Management Ltd cut its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,389 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.5% of Silphium Asset Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Silphium Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,988,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,356,271 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,920,107,000 after acquiring an additional 711,560 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,325,416 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,141,062,000 after purchasing an additional 90,107 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,275,056 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,124,263,000 after purchasing an additional 150,844 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at $5,692,035,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,291,557 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,248,384,000 after buying an additional 383,887 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $947.00 to $917.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, December 29th. Northcoast Research set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 target price for the company. Finally, Hovde Group started coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $16.00 target price for the company. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $996.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 458 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $955.00, for a total value of $437,390.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,148,060. This trade represents a 5.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $939.00, for a total value of $1,408,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,101,943. This represents a 3.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 9,315 shares of company stock valued at $8,549,409 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Costco Wholesale this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100 price target, signaling continued analyst confidence and upside vs. the current level. Telsey reaffirmation and $1,100 PT
• Positive Sentiment: New store investment: a roughly $37M Costco build in New Braunfels is progressing ahead of an April opening — expansion that supports future sales and membership growth. $37M New Braunfels construction
• Positive Sentiment: Operations/UX improvements: recent changes to speed up shopping for members can raise throughput and sales per visit. Shopping faster and easier for members
• Positive Sentiment: Media bullishness: commentators including Jim Cramer have highlighted Costco’s recent momentum, which can lift sentiment and buying interest. Jim Cramer says ‘Been a Good Bounce’
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry comparisons and stock-picking pieces (e.g., Motley Fool) examine Costco vs. Walmart — useful context but not an immediate price driver. Costco vs. Walmart analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data appears inconsistent (zeros/NaN), so there’s no clear indication of a large short-squeeze or meaningful short pressure from the published figure.
• Negative Sentiment: Product recall: Costco recalled mini beignets across multiple states for mislabeling that creates an allergy risk — a reputational and potential liability headwind, though likely small relative to company scale. Costco recalls mini beignets after packaging mix-up
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrade: an InvestorPlace update included a downgrade of Costco in its blue-chip rankings, which can create short-term selling pressure among model/benchmark investors. FedEx Upgraded, Costco Downgraded

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST stock opened at $968.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $908.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $929.27. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $844.06 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. The company has a market capitalization of $429.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.87, a P/E/G ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $67.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.03 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 29.35%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.04 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.85%.

About Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a global chain of membership-only warehouse clubs that sell a wide array of merchandise in bulk at discounted prices. The company’s product mix includes groceries, fresh and frozen food, household goods, electronics, apparel, and seasonal items, augmented by its prominent private-label brand, Kirkland Signature. Costco’s business model centers on annual membership fees and high-volume, low-margin sales, designed to drive repeat purchasing and strong customer loyalty among both consumers and small-business buyers.

Beyond merchandise, Costco provides a range of ancillary services that complement its warehouses, including gasoline stations, pharmacy and optical services, hearing aid centers, photo services, and travel and insurance products.