Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Sold by International Assets Investment Management LLC

International Assets Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 12.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,781 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,083 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $7,755,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remained generally constructive, with multiple firms reiterating Buy/Overweight views and price targets around or above current levels, suggesting Wall Street still sees upside for Costco despite the recent pullback.
• Positive Sentiment: Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.47 per share, reinforcing its shareholder-return profile. Costco stock overview and dividend note
• Positive Sentiment: Management also expanded its digital wallet feature, which could improve checkout speed and customer convenience. Costco makes payment change that could speed up checkout for members
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful change, with reported short interest at zero shares, offering little signal for near-term trading.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are focusing on a slowdown in June sales momentum and weaker adjusted comparable-sales growth, which raises concern that Costco may be losing some near-term growth speed. Reuters article reference
• Negative Sentiment: Competition is intensifying as Walmart and Kroger cut prices, increasing pressure on Costco’s value proposition and margin outlook.
• Negative Sentiment: New headlines about a class-action lawsuit alleging Costco sold protein powder with heavy metals add legal and reputational risk. Consumers sue Costco over heavy metals in protein powder

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,192.00 to $1,194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,175.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Citigroup began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, June 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,020.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,061.10.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $3.28 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $916.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,099,105 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,488,933. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $844.06 and a one year high of $1,096.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $983.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $975.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market cap of $406.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.88.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.94 by ($0.01). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.04% and a net margin of 3.01%.The business had revenue of $70.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.28 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 29.58%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $957.45, for a total transaction of $847,343.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,575,653.55. This represents a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.