Cherry Creek Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 738 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Cherry Creek Investment Advisors Inc. lessened its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 14.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,375 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 738 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 1.8% of Cherry Creek Investment Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Cherry Creek Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,050,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hobbs Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Hobbs Wealth Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Graney & King LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 6.8% in the second quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 173 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Seneschal Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% in the second quarter. Seneschal Advisors LLC now owns 3,142 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,110,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Busey Bank increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the third quarter. Busey Bank now owns 2,651 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,454,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pasadena Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the third quarter. Pasadena Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,403 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Membership revenue acceleration — Costco reported a 14% jump in membership fees in Q1 FY26, driven by high renewals and executive upgrades, supporting predictable, resilient cash flow. Costco’s Membership Model Continues to Deliver Predictable Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Exceptionally sticky base — Renewal rates of ~92.3% in the U.S./Canada and ~89.8% worldwide underline the durability of Costco’s membership engine and recurring profit contribution. Nine Out of Ten Costco Members Renew
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support lifted — Gordon Haskett raised its price target to $1,100, implying notable upside versus recent levels, which can attract buyers and validate upside expectations. Gordon Haskett Adjusts Price Target on Costco
• Positive Sentiment: Telsey reaffirms outperform with $1,100 target — another bullish signal from the sell side that can support demand. Telsey Advisory Group Reaffirms Rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reporting appears to contain data anomalies (zeros/NaN and a 0.0 days-to-cover). This looks like a reporting glitch rather than a material change in short exposure. (internal short-interest entries)
• Neutral Sentiment: New-store activity — a ~$37M construction project in New Braunfels signals continued network expansion (incremental revenue potential but not immediate margin driver). $37M Costco construction soars in New Braunfels
• Negative Sentiment: Product recall — Costco recalled mini beignets due to mislabeling/allergy risk across multiple states. This is reputational and operationally inconvenient but appears limited in scale. Costco recalls mini beignets after packaging mix-up
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/downgrade noise — at least one roundup (InvestorPlace) included a downgrade of Costco within blue-chip ranking updates; such headlines can create short-term selling pressure even if fundamentals remain intact. FedEx Upgraded, Costco Downgraded

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $977.92 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $434.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $909.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $929.46. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $844.06 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.07. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 29.35%. The firm had revenue of $67.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Hovde Group initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $16.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,218.00 to $1,171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,134.00 to $1,146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Gordon Haskett lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,100.00 in a report on Tuesday. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $998.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $916.32, for a total value of $1,374,480.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,240 shares in the company, valued at $7,550,476.80. This trade represents a 15.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 44,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,101,943. The trade was a 3.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 9,315 shares of company stock worth $8,549,409. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Profile

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.