Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Holdings Decreased by Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC

Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 42,634 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,084 shares during the quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $38,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,901,594 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $22,359,224,000 after buying an additional 5,749,362 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.5% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,515,031 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,488,203,000 after buying an additional 773,651 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.5% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,068,312 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,870,314,000 after buying an additional 160,893 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.1% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 2,839,016 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,828,881,000 after buying an additional 283,360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ascentis Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 103,637.0% in the second quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,500,062 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,549,616,000 after buying an additional 2,497,652 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Value proposition strengthened by inflation: With consumer prices rising 3.7% year over year and gasoline prices up sharply, Costco’s low-margin, high-volume model and reported 14% markup cap could attract shoppers seeking lower prices. Inflation and Costco’s value model
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: CICC initiated coverage of Costco with an “Outperform” rating, adding a new bullish view on the company’s long-term prospects. CICC Costco coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion and membership durability: Costco operates 292 of its 939 warehouses outside the U.S. and Puerto Rico, leaving room for overseas membership growth. Articles also highlight the company’s strong customer retention, a feature that supports recurring membership revenue. Costco overseas membership growth
• Positive Sentiment: Digital execution: Costco, Walmart and Target are benefiting from faster delivery, AI-enabled shopping and marketplace partnerships, supporting continued e-commerce growth. Retail digital sales growth
• Neutral Sentiment: ETF purchases and coverage describing Costco’s desserts, pumpkin pie, tote bags and planned South Meridian warehouse opening reinforce brand engagement and store expansion, but are unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. ETF purchases of Costco
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco’s supplier controls and food-safety procedures may protect customer trust, though attention to food-safety risks highlights an ongoing operational issue for grocery retailers. Costco food-safety procedures
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation risk: Costco trades at the highest earnings multiple among six large retailers in one comparison, despite ranking only fifth in operating margin. That premium leaves less room for execution disappointments and may limit upside. Costco valuation versus rivals
• Negative Sentiment: Walmart’s aggressive holiday-sales ambitions and early Black Friday promotions reinforce competitive pressure, particularly around price and convenience. Walmart holiday competition

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,130.00 to $1,100.00 in a report on Friday, September 25th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 25th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $1,175.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Twenty-five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,086.19.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.93, for a total value of $2,015,046.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 7,134 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,534,244.62. This represents a 23.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $958.21, for a total transaction of $1,054,031.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,094 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,964,701.74. This trade represents a 26.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $998.31 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $442.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.09, a PEG ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $935.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $962.90. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $844.06 and a 52 week high of $1,096.50.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.21. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 27.60% and a net margin of 3.04%. The firm had revenue of $95.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.87 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 22.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 28.32%.

Costco Wholesale Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a membership-based warehouse retail business under the Costco name. The company sells merchandise in bulk and at competitive prices through warehouse clubs and e-commerce platforms, serving individual consumers, businesses and other organizations.

Its product selection includes groceries and fresh foods, household supplies, appliances, electronics, furniture, apparel, health and beauty products, jewelry, automotive products and prescription drugs. Costco also provides services such as optical care, pharmacy services, hearing-aid sales, travel offerings and fuel sales, depending on location.

The company traces its roots to Price Club, which opened in San Diego in 1976.