Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Keeps Sector Perform Rating at Royal Bank Of Canada

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $1,000.00 price objective on the retailer’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price objective points to a potential upside of 6.04% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,125.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Argus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,230.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Freedom Broker reduced their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,030.00 to $1,010.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,200.00 to $1,095.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $1,175.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,046.27.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock traded down $4.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $943.08. 561,339 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,187,697. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $930.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $963.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $418.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.43, a P/E/G ratio of 4.03 and a beta of 0.88. Costco Wholesale has a 12-month low of $844.06 and a 12-month high of $1,096.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its 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 net margin of 3.04% and a return on equity of 27.60%. The business had revenue of $95.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.87 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale will post 22.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.93, for a total value of $2,015,046.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,244.62. This represents a 23.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 31.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,901,594 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $22,359,224,000 after acquiring an additional 5,749,362 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,515,031 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,488,203,000 after acquiring an additional 773,651 shares in the last quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 99,278.0% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,726,899 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $672,690,000 after purchasing an additional 6,720,130 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 838.9% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,125,405 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,282,182,000 after purchasing an additional 5,472,968 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,328,729 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,732,836,000 after purchasing an additional 143,150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

More Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong September sales: Costco reported September net sales of $30.02 billion, up 13% year over year. Companywide comparable sales increased 11.4%, while comparable sales excluding gasoline and foreign-exchange effects rose 7.6%. U.S. comparable sales increased 12.5%, supported by higher traffic and transaction growth. Costco Wholesale Corporation Reports September Sales Results
• Positive Sentiment: Digital and membership momentum: Online sales reportedly grew 19%, reinforcing Costco’s retail momentum. Coverage also points to the company’s popular merchandise and new offerings as potential drivers of membership sign-ups and customer engagement. Costco’s September Sales Rise 13% on Strong Comps, Digital Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed its “sector perform” rating but set a $1,000 price target, implying moderate upside from recent trading levels. UBS also characterized September trends as accelerating. Royal Bank of Canada rating update Costco September Sales Point to Accelerating Trends
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain measured: DA Davidson maintained a “hold” rating following a warehouse-club tour, suggesting that strong traffic is already balanced against valuation and margin concerns. DA Davidson Costco warehouse tour
• Negative Sentiment: Growth quality and valuation risks: Analysts caution that part of September’s comparable-sales surge may have come from higher gasoline prices and other lower-margin or one-time benefits. COST trades at roughly 45 times earnings, leaving limited room for execution misses or margin pressure. Costco’s Sales Rebound in September

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a membership-based warehouse retail business under the Costco name. The company sells a broad selection of merchandise, including groceries, fresh foods, beverages, appliances, electronics, furniture, apparel, jewelry, hardware, and seasonal products. It also offers services such as gasoline, pharmacies, optical departments, hearing-aid centers, food courts, travel services, and business delivery in selected markets.

Costco markets many products under its private-label Kirkland Signature brand and sells merchandise through warehouse locations and e-commerce platforms.