Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Acquired by Hodges Capital Management Inc.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 65.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,457 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,150 shares during the quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,706,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in COST. Hurley Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 120.0% during the third quarter. Hurley Capital LLC now owns 33 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 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: 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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on COST. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, June 1st. Bank of America upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,185.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,088.00 to $1,159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,125.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,050.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,060.41.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $983.37 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $436.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.47, a PEG ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.88. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $844.06 and a fifty-two week high of $1,096.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,006.04 and a 200 day moving average of $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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $70.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.12 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 28.04%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.28 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict 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. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 29.58%.

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.