Hartford Investment Management Co. Has $24.05 Million Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Hartford Investment Management Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 25,986 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 779 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 0.7% of Hartford Investment Management Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $24,053,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 975.0% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 72.0% during the second quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2,200.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $939.00, for a total transaction of $1,408,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,837 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,101,943. This represents a 3.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $986.26, for a total transaction of $838,321.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,228 shares in the company, valued at $4,169,907.28. This represents a 16.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 9,315 shares of company stock valued at $8,549,409 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 3.0%

COST opened at $968.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $429.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.87, a PEG ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 1.01. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $908.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $929.27. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $844.06 and a twelve month high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released 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 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $4.04 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 27.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,125.00 to $1,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Northcoast Research set a $1,100.00 target price on Costco Wholesale and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $1,044.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,033.00 to $926.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $996.00.

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

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.