Sarasin & Partners LLP Reduces Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Sarasin & Partners LLP lowered its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 15.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 197,416 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 37,039 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 1.8% of Sarasin & Partners LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Sarasin & Partners LLP’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $170,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,325,416 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,141,062,000 after purchasing an additional 90,107 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter worth $5,692,035,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.8% during 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. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 45.0% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 3,176,606 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,893,697,000 after buying an additional 986,182 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,145,241 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,911,331,000 after buying an additional 34,826 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of several research reports. Roth Mkm reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore set a $1,100.00 price target on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. UBS Group set a $1,175.00 price objective on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 6th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,115.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $926.00 to $977.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,039.13.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ COST opened at $972.33 on Monday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $844.06 and a 1 year high of $1,067.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $431.37 billion, a PE ratio of 50.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of $984.26 and a 200 day moving average of $938.49.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The retailer reported $4.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.55 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $69.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.96 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.57% and a net margin of 2.99%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.02 EPS. Research analysts forecast 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 was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.04%.

Key Headlines Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco is keeping fuel prices low with a deliberate pricing strategy to stay cheaper than competitors, which can drive continued traffic and membership value. As Gas Prices Soar, Costco’s Using This Smart Strategy To Stay Cheaper Than Most
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive: consensus ratings across brokerages show a majority buy/moderate-buy stance, supporting investor confidence. Costco Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Costco upgraded its retail-media platform, a potential new ad-revenue stream that can boost margins over time. Costco upgrades its retail media platform
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish write-ups (seeking-alpha coverage and long-term valuation defenses) are reinforcing the narrative that Costco’s membership model and pricing power can sustain outperformance. Costco: A Likely Outperformer Based On The Business Model
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Ron Vachris addressed questions about the $1.50 hot dog combo, offering clarity to a vocal part of Costco’s brand/PR — removes a potential source of uncertainty but has limited direct earnings impact. Costco CEO gives update on future of $1.50 hot dog and soda combo
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco added new Kirkland Signature items (and launched a private-label refrigerated dog food), moves that can deepen margins and member loyalty but may take time to scale. Costco adds Kirkland Signature items
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry coverage and investor-interest pieces (Zacks, Yahoo, TipRanks) are drawing attention to COST, which can amplify trading activity but not necessarily change fundamentals. Costco is Attracting Investor Attention
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a risk: COST trades at a premium (P/E around 50x), leaving limited room for error if same-store sales or margin expansion disappoint — this makes the stock sensitive to any weaker-than-expected data.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,003.02, for a total value of $732,204.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,121 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,139,485.42. This represents a 10.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $916.32, for a total transaction of $1,374,480.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,240 shares in the company, valued at $7,550,476.80. The trade was a 15.40% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 7,645 shares of company stock valued at $7,049,302 in the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is currently 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.