Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Falls 1.5% – Time to Sell?

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)’s share price fell 1.5% during trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $1,002.68 and last traded at $1,003.32. Approximately 2,106,119 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 4% from the average daily volume of 2,187,460 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,018.21.

Costco Wholesale News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco is expanding its beauty offering through a new Beauty Table program, which will feature REJURAN® COSMETICS skincare products and could increase customer traffic, product variety and high-margin sales. REJURAN Cosmetics Expands U.S. Retail Presence Through Costco’s Beauty Table Program
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains supportive. CICC initiated coverage with an Outperform rating, while Tigress Financial raised its price target to $1,250. Costco’s average brokerage recommendation is equivalent to a Buy. CICC Initiates Coverage With Outperform Rating Tigress Financial Raises Costco Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group modestly increased its fiscal 2028 EPS estimate to $25.07 from $25.01, reinforcing expectations for continued earnings growth. Separate commentary highlights Costco’s membership model and strong decade-long shareholder returns as long-term advantages. Erste Group Raises Costco EPS Estimate Costco’s Long-Term Shareholder Returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Discussion of a potential stock split could support retail-investor interest, but Costco’s CEO only indicated that the issue is regularly discussed; no split has been announced. Could Costco Announce Another Stock Split?
• Negative Sentiment: Kroger plans to spend $5 billion on lower prices after acknowledging market-share losses to Walmart and Costco. A more aggressive grocery-price environment could pressure Costco’s margins or require greater promotional spending. Kroger Plans Price Cuts to Compete With Costco and Walmart
• Negative Sentiment: At roughly 48 times earnings, COST remains richly valued. Broader volatility, elevated interest rates and profit-taking can pressure a premium-priced stock even when its operating outlook remains favorable.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. 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 note on Thursday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,050.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Roth Capital reissued a “sell” rating and set a $781.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Twenty-five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,086.19.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.5%

The company has a market cap of $444.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.33, a PEG ratio of 4.27 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $937.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $962.93.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $94.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $5.87 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 22.70 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of COST. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 31.7% in the second 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 during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings 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 worth $7,488,203,000 after buying an additional 773,651 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 5.5% in the 2nd 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 acquiring an additional 160,893 shares during the period. Amundi increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 2,839,016 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,828,881,000 after acquiring an additional 283,360 shares during the period. Finally, Ascentis Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 103,637.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ascentis Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,500,062 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,549,616,000 after acquiring an additional 2,497,652 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

About Costco Wholesale

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.