Eastern Bank Boosts Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Eastern Bank increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 21,392 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $18,447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1,586.8% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,137,436 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $980,857,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070,005 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 45.0% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,176,606 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,893,697,000 after buying an additional 986,182 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position 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 in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 112.2% during the third quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 477,425 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $441,919,000 after buying an additional 252,453 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3,728.4% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 245,590 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $243,119,000 after buying an additional 239,175 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group raised FY2026 and FY2027 EPS estimates, signaling stronger-than-expected profit outlook that supports higher valuation multiples for COST. Erste Group EPS Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Costco is rolling out standalone gas stations — a potential traffic driver and membership-value play that could boost ancillary revenue and stickiness of memberships. Costco Is Launching Standalone Gas Stations
• Positive Sentiment: Costco opened its 11th Canadian Business Centre (Winnipeg), expanding B2B footprint, creating local jobs and increasing wholesale penetration in a new province. Canada’s Eleventh Costco Business Centre
• Positive Sentiment: New Kirkland energy drink rollout is drawing customer enthusiasm and could pressure branded competitors while reinforcing Costco’s private-label margin advantages. Kirkland Energy Drink Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile endorsements and favorable press (Charlie Munger praise, coverage highlighting membership loyalty) help sentiment and investor confidence in Costco’s durable model. Charlie Munger on Costco
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Costco to Walmart and Amazon frames Costco as a defensive, membership-driven retailer but highlights intensifying omnichannel and ad-revenue competition from peers. Walmart or Costco: Who’s Winning?
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor write-ups (Fool, MarketBeat) continue to list Costco as a top consumer-staples holding — supportive for long-term flows but not a catalyst for immediate re-rating. The 2 Best Consumer Staples Stocks
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and media flag concerns about membership-growth trends and rich valuation — a key risk that could cap upside if membership or comparable-sales momentum slows. Analyst Concerns on Membership Growth

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 850 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $986.26, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,003.02, for a total value of $732,204.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,139,485.42. This represents a 10.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 7,645 shares of company stock worth $7,049,302. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,171.00 to $1,088.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 6th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, February 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,185.00 target price for the company. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $1,115.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $1,044.00 price target on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,039.13.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $983.86 on Friday. 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 has a fifty day simple moving average of $986.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $938.98. The stock has a market cap of $436.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.16, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 1.01. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $844.06 and a 12-month high of $1,067.08.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Costco Wholesale Company 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.