Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Acquires 8,542 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 17.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,990 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 8,542 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 0.6% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $49,145,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,165,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake 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 worth $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,853 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,814,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the second quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,110 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,089,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.2% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 8,502 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,416,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer said investors “buy some here,” reinforcing a bullish view on Costco as a long-term holding despite a tougher consumer backdrop. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Costco reported strong May net sales growth, including a 14.5% year-over-year increase, and one article noted digital sales jumped 21% while gas volumes hit a record, signaling healthy demand across key categories. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighted Costco’s continued membership and traffic strength, with analysts and commentators pointing to upside and strong institutional interest in the stock. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco is also drawing attention for ESG and governance reasons after CEO Ron Vachris was recognized for board diversity leadership, which may matter to some investors but is not an immediate earnings driver. Article title
• Negative Sentiment: Costco is fighting a class-action lawsuit over its $5 rotisserie chicken, with plaintiffs alleging misleading “no preservatives” marketing, creating a potential reputational and legal overhang. Article title
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary also suggests Costco may face tougher comparisons in a price-sensitive consumer environment, with rivals like Dollar Tree seen as having a pricing advantage on smaller-pack items. Article title

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,205.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings raised Costco Wholesale from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,060.41.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:COST opened at $983.37 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $844.06 and a one year high of $1,096.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The company has a market cap of $436.10 billion, a PE ratio of 49.47, a P/E/G ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,006.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $966.09.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.94 by ($0.01). Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 28.04%. The business had revenue of $70.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.28 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 1st were paid a $1.47 dividend. 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 dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 29.58%.

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.