Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Holdings Lowered by Rhumbline Advisers

Rhumbline Advisers decreased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 852,291 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 11,145 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.6% of Rhumbline Advisers’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.19% of Costco Wholesale worth $788,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Soundwatch Capital LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 635.7% during the 2nd quarter. Soundwatch Capital LLC now owns 2,553 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 2,206 shares during the period. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at $35,000. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 72.0% during the 2nd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST opened at $971.23 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $844.06 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.23. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $917.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $931.14. The firm has a market cap of $431.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Trending Headlines about Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised targets and reiterated bullish ratings — Evercore ISI bumped its price target to $1,050 and kept an “outperform” call, and JPMorgan raised its target to $1,050 with an “overweight” rating; these lifts imply upside vs. the current price and may underpin investor interest. Evercore ISI price target raise The Fly
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying: RFG Advisory increased its stake in COST (small position increase disclosed), which signals continued fund-level confidence in the business. RFG Advisory buys Costco shares
• Positive Sentiment: Local development pipeline: city approvals moving forward for a new Costco at Seminole Towne Center, which supports long-term footprint expansion and sales growth. Sanford moves forward with Costco development
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend speculation: commentary on the possibility of another large special dividend can buoy investor demand (special dividends historically lift sentiment). Will Costco treat investors to another special dividend?
• Neutral Sentiment: Interest and coverage pieces (Zacks, Yahoo, Motley Fool) highlight Costco as a trending name and discuss January sales strength and upcoming Q2 results — these drive attention but don’t change fundamentals immediately. Zacks trending stock piece
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data in the feed is effectively zero/invalid and provides no meaningful bearish pressure (no actionable signal).
• Negative Sentiment: Consumer issues: reports that some gift cards sold at Costco are now worthless could hurt member trust and generate negative headlines. Some gift cards sold at Costco are now worthless
• Negative Sentiment: Recall and safety warnings: a nationwide recall update with warnings of “severe” reactions raises potential liability and PR risk; such stories can pressure the stock near-term until resolved. Costco recall update

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. Robert W. Baird set a $1,100.00 target price on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,065.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Roth Mkm reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $1,000.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,009.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 9th. The shares were 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 approximately $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 through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 458 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $955.00, for a total transaction of $437,390.00. Following the sale, the director owned 8,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,148,060. This trade represents a 5.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 6,915 shares of company stock worth $6,317,097 in the last quarter. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.