5,877 Shares in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Purchased by Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac

Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,877 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $5,068,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $204,000. Linscomb Wealth Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Linscomb Wealth Inc. now owns 6,682 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,762,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Pasadena Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Pasadena Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,472 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,269,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 23.9% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 5,700 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,915,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Consulting Group grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Weaver Consulting Group now owns 1,459 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,258,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco reported stronger-than-expected sales, including U.S. same-store sales growth of 9.8% and adjusted comparable sales up 6.6%, showing that demand remains resilient even in a pressured consumer environment.
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue came in above Wall Street expectations, with $70.53 billion in quarterly sales versus estimates of $69.68 billion, reinforcing the company’s ability to keep growing at scale.
• Positive Sentiment: Membership and gas-related traffic appear to be supporting results, with higher fuel prices bringing more shoppers into warehouses and boosting basket sizes and same-store sales.
• Neutral Sentiment: EPS of $4.93 was slightly below the consensus estimate of $4.98, making the report mixed rather than uniformly strong, even though profits still improved year over year.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several pre-earnings articles framed Costco as a high-quality defensive retailer with a premium valuation, suggesting investors may continue to focus on whether the stock can justify its elevated multiple.
• Negative Sentiment: The small earnings miss could temper enthusiasm in the near term, especially given the stock’s recent run-up and the market’s high expectations heading into the print.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,003.02, for a total value of $732,204.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,121 shares in the company, valued at $6,139,485.42. This represents a 10.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Evercore set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,104.00 to $1,106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,192.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,051.18.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST opened at $995.20 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $844.06 and a one year high of $1,096.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,008.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $962.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $441.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.94 and a beta of 0.92.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.98 by ($0.05). Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 28.57%. The company had revenue of $70.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $69.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 30.58%.

Costco Wholesale Profile

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.