Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Holdings Boosted by Gradient Investments LLC

Gradient Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,345 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,005 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $24,443,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,165,000 after buying an additional 2,172 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.5% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,853 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,814,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the second quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,110 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,089,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 8,502 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,416,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 850 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $986.26, for a total value of $838,321.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,169,907.28. The trade was a 16.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Javier Polit sold 2,049 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $867.21, for a total transaction of $1,776,913.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 10,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,320,773.08. This trade represents a 16.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,645 shares of company stock worth $7,049,302. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $926.00 to $977.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,039.13.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.3%

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $972.33 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $431.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.56, a PEG ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $984.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $938.49. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $844.06 and a 52 week high of $1,067.08.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The retailer reported $4.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $69.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $68.96 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 28.57%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.02 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.04%.

Trending Headlines about 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.

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.