Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Earns “Sector Perform” Rating from Royal Bank Of Canada

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $1,000.00 target price on the retailer’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 8.37% from the company’s previous close.

COST has been the topic of several other research reports. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,088.00 to $1,159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Mizuho cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,065.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,046.77.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 2.9%

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $26.29 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $922.77. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,627,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,199,807. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The business’s 50 day moving average is $933.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $967.86. Costco Wholesale has a 12-month low of $844.06 and a 12-month high of $1,096.50. The firm has a market cap of $409.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.86.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.21. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.04% and a net margin of 3.01%.The firm had revenue of $95.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.97 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale will post 20.42 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 42.0% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 117,027 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $109,475,000 after acquiring an additional 34,608 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 49.6% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 21,023 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,666,000 after acquiring an additional 6,969 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 68.9% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,042,046 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $974,803,000 after acquiring an additional 424,982 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,901,594 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $22,359,224,000 after acquiring an additional 5,749,362 shares during the period. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.3% in the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 12,243 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,419,000 after buying an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly beat and resilient demand: Costco reported $6.75 in adjusted EPS versus a $6.54 consensus estimate and revenue of $95.72 billion versus expectations of $94.97 billion. Net income rose 14.9% year over year, while comparable sales increased 9.4%, reflecting continued demand for essential goods amid economic uncertainty. Costco fourth-quarter earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Digital and membership engagement remain healthy: Digitally enabled comparable sales surged 19.5%, supported by broad-based gains across categories. Costco also highlighted younger members, strong renewal rates and plans to accelerate digital investment. Costco Q4 earnings call highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion supports the long-term growth story: Management plans to open 33 new warehouses in fiscal 2027, while pharmacy, gasoline and international operations contributed to the latest results. Analysts including Goldman Sachs, UBS and Bernstein remain constructive, despite adjusting some price targets. Costco expansion plans
• Neutral Sentiment: Tariff refunds boosted earnings: A $184 million tariff refund contributed approximately $0.15 per share to fourth-quarter EPS. Costco said most of the money will be reinvested in lower prices for produce, meat, beverages and other merchandise, which may support customer loyalty but makes the earnings beat less reflective of recurring profitability. Costco tariff refunds
• Negative Sentiment: Membership growth is the key concern: Analysts noted that membership-fee growth has slowed significantly. Because recurring membership income is central to Costco’s valuation and future guidance, investors may require continued gains in members and renewal rates to justify the stock’s elevated earnings multiple.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and cost pressures temper enthusiasm: With a price-to-earnings ratio above 46, some analysts argue that much of Costco’s execution is already priced in. Rising memory-component costs also led to a $152 million electronics-related charge, while several firms lowered price targets following the report. Costco valuation analysis

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates membership-based warehouse clubs that offer a broad selection of merchandise at generally competitive prices. Its product range includes groceries, fresh foods, apparel, appliances, electronics, furniture, jewelry, hardware, and seasonal goods, along with private-label products sold under the Kirkland Signature brand.

The company also provides a variety of ancillary services, including gasoline stations, pharmacies, optical centers, hearing-aid centers, food courts, tire centers, and travel services.