Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $1,086.19

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-four ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $1,086.19.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,160.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $781.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $1,000.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, September 28th.

Costco Wholesale News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco received approval to build a warehouse at Seacoast Landing in Newington, New Hampshire, with an opening targeted for 2027. The new location should expand Costco’s store base and provide a long-term source of membership and sales growth. Costco gets approval to build at Seacoast Landing
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion through DoorDash and Uber Eats could generate incremental sales, attract younger shoppers and strengthen Costco’s digital presence without materially reducing warehouse traffic. Costco DoorDash and Uber Eats expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Costco and Walmart are gaining grocery market share as consumers increasingly seek value amid higher household costs. This reinforces Costco’s competitive positioning and could support comparable sales and membership retention. Walmart and Costco gaining grocery market share
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco is scheduled to pay its final quarterly dividend of 2026 on November 13, providing a predictable shareholder return but adding little new information about the company’s growth outlook. Costco dividend payment
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco and other companies objected to OKXICE’s proposed tokenized-stock trading platform. The move protects the company’s branding and shareholder rights but is unlikely to affect near-term earnings. Companies oppose OKXICE tokenized stocks plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles discussing a possible stock split emphasize that Costco has rarely split its shares and may not do so in 2027. A split would not change underlying value, while the stock’s high valuation leaves less room for execution disappointments. Costco stock split outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Exchange-traded funds were net sellers of approximately $75.6 million of COST shares on October 29, indicating some institutional profit-taking and creating modest short-term selling pressure. ETFs are net sellers of Costco

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,200 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.93, for a total transaction of $2,015,046.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,134 shares in the company, valued at $6,534,244.62. This trade represents a 23.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 owned 3,094 shares in the company, valued at $2,964,701.74. This represents a 26.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First National Bank of Hutchinson boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the first quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 1,098 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,094,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Frisch Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Frisch Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,049 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Group LTD lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Main Street Group LTD now owns 1,226 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,221,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC now owns 803 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $769,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SHUTTLEWORTH & Co boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. SHUTTLEWORTH & Co now owns 2,442 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,433,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,040.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $461.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $945.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $970.75. Costco Wholesale has a twelve month low of $844.06 and a twelve month high of $1,096.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $95.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.97 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 27.60% and a net margin of 3.04%. The business’s revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale will post 22.70 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.32%.

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.