Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Up 1.2% – Should You Buy?

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) traded up 1.2% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $953.73 and last traded at $945.47. Approximately 1,394,023 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 36% from the average daily volume of 2,179,721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $934.66.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco has begun offering delivery for customizable sheet cakes and party platters, adding convenience for customers and potentially increasing engagement and sales in its food-service business. Costco now offering delivery for its most cherished items
• Positive Sentiment: The opening of Costco’s first warehouse in Celina, Texas—identified as one of the nation’s fastest-growing cities—supports the company’s long-term unit-growth strategy and membership expansion. Costco opens first store in nation’s fastest-growing city
• Positive Sentiment: Costco’s partnership with SCAN Health Plan to offer limited Medicare Advantage and Supplemental plans could create a new source of member value and diversify the company’s ecosystem over time. Healthcare CEO partnering with Costco outlines Medicare offerings
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary continues to frame Costco as a high-quality dividend-growth retailer with a strong competitive moat and potential upside through the remainder of 2026. The optimistic outlook is tempered by COST’s elevated earnings multiple, making execution important. Walmart vs. Costco: Which Dividend Growth Stock Is the Smarter Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: The $4.99 rotisserie chicken remains a powerful customer-attraction tool, but Costco’s efforts to control production costs highlight continuing inflation and margin challenges. The cult Costco rotisserie chicken defying inflation
• Negative Sentiment: Costco is refunding certain tariff duties while defending a related class-action lawsuit. Refund expenses, potential liabilities, and reputational concerns could pressure results, although the refunds may help preserve customer trust. Why Is Costco Refunding Tariff Duties While Fighting A Class Action

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on COST. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $977.00 to $1,011.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,110.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,125.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,205.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,059.53.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.2%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $945.92 and a 200 day moving average of $980.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $419.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.56, a PEG ratio of 4.55 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.12 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.04% and a net margin of 3.01%.During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.28 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 24th were issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 24th. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 29.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 885 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $957.45, for a total value of $847,343.25. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,575,653.55. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 20,081 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $15,835,000 after buying an additional 1,560 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 214,194 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $200,372,000 after buying an additional 13,795 shares during the last quarter. Perryman Financial Advisory Inc. AD bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $9,300,000. Retail Employees Superannuation Pty Ltd as trustee for Retail Employees Superannuation Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $5,813,000. Finally, Hyperion Asset Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hyperion Asset Management Ltd now owns 68,762 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $64,325,000 after purchasing an additional 5,656 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

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.