Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Sold by Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. decreased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 54,130 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 8,000 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 2.0% of Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $50,637,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 750.0% in the first quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 34 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 885 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $957.45, for a total transaction of $847,343.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,575,653.55. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

More Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco’s membership program remains a key long-term growth engine, with recurring membership revenue and renewal strength potentially supporting profitability and cash flow. Costco Has a Secret Growth Engine
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentators continue to view Costco as a durable long-term compounder; one projection suggests a $10,000 investment could grow to $13,400 over five years, although that is an opinion rather than company guidance. Costco Five-Year Investment Projection
• Positive Sentiment: Costco is expanding its physical footprint with a new Celina, Texas, warehouse, while a delivery upgrade could improve convenience and sales of popular merchandise. Costco Celina Warehouse
• Positive Sentiment: A partnership with SCAN Health Plan to offer Medicare Advantage and supplemental plans could create an additional member-engagement and revenue opportunity, though the financial impact is not yet clear. Costco and SCAN Medicare Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: New projects in Newington, New Hampshire, involving Costco and other companies are advancing, but the report provides limited information on Costco’s direct financial benefit. Newington Projects Advance
• Negative Sentiment: Costco’s premium valuation leaves little room for disappointment: the company recently reported quarterly EPS of $4.93, narrowly missing the $4.94 consensus estimate, despite revenue exceeding expectations. Its P/E ratio near 47 also increases sensitivity to weaker-than-expected results. Costco Stock Performance and Key Facts
• Negative Sentiment: Costco is refunding certain tariff duties while defending a related class-action lawsuit. Refund costs, possible liabilities, and reputational concerns may weigh on investor sentiment. Costco Tariff Refunds and Lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure is increasing as JCPenney targets the same value-oriented, “treasure hunt” retail appeal, potentially challenging Costco’s customer engagement at the margin. JCPenney Targets Costco’s Retail Strategy

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on COST. Roth Capital boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $769.00 to $781.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, July 13th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,020.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,059.53.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of COST opened at $934.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $945.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $980.16. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1-year low of $844.06 and a 1-year high of $1,096.50. The stock has a market cap of $414.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.55 and a beta of 0.87.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.94 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $70.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.12 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 28.04%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.28 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Investors of record on Friday, July 24th were paid a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 24th. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.58%.

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.