Allen Investment Management LLC Grows Stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Allen Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,475 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 960 shares during the quarter. Allen Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,721,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,781,000. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 20,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $15,835,000 after buying an additional 1,560 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 140,429 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $121,098,000 after buying an additional 27,625 shares during the period. Curtis Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 56.7% in the fourth quarter. Curtis Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,535 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,911,000 after buying an additional 1,641 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 399,894 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $370,140,000 after buying an additional 5,937 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco’s Q3 comparable sales rose 9.8%, with adjusted comps up 6.6% on higher traffic and bigger baskets, showing healthy underlying demand. Is Costco’s 9.8% Comparable Sales Growth Stronger Than It Looks?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Jefferies said Costco’s value strategy, membership growth, fuel business, and digital operations continue to support sales momentum after a strong fiscal third quarter. Costco’s value strategy, membership growth support outlook after strong quarter, says Jefferies
• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson reiterated a bullish view, calling Costco a “best-of-breed” retailer with strong returns on equity and a $1,000 price target. Costco Wholesale Is A ‘Best-of-Breed Bison,’ Analyst Explains Why
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary notes that part of the sales growth was boosted by fuel and foreign exchange, suggesting the headline comp number may overstate the core business trend. Is Costco’s 9.8% Comparable Sales Growth Stronger Than It Looks?
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles emphasize that despite strong revenue growth, the stock has not been able to build momentum, implying investors may already expect excellent results from Costco. Why Even 12% Revenue Growth in Q3 Wasn’t Enough to Give Costco’s Stock a Boost
• Negative Sentiment: Costco’s stock has been falling in the wake of earnings, with investors seemingly taking profits or worrying that membership growth is slowing relative to sales momentum. Why analysts are backing Costco despite its post-earnings slump

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,139,485.42. The trade was a 10.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on COST. Mizuho set a $1,100.00 price objective on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,104.00 to $1,106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,185.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $1,050.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,056.32.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $946.11 on Tuesday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $844.06 and a 12-month high of $1,096.50. The company has a market capitalization of $419.74 billion, a PE ratio of 47.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.88. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average is $1,007.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $963.04.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by ($0.01). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.72% and a net margin of 3.01%.The business had revenue of $70.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.12 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.28 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st were given a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.58%.

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.