Sanford C. Bernstein Has Lowered Expectations for Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) had its target price reduced by stock analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $1,144.00 to $1,143.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the retailer’s stock. Sanford C. Bernstein’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 27.50% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,088.00 to $1,159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $977.00 to $1,011.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Mizuho set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Finally, Freedom Broker raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,030.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,052.61.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $896.48 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $934.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $968.18. Costco Wholesale has a 12 month low of $844.06 and a 12 month high of $1,096.50. 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 company has a market capitalization of $397.57 billion, a PE ratio of 45.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.86.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.21. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 3.01% and a return on equity of 28.04%. The business had revenue of $95.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.97 billion. Analysts predict that Costco Wholesale will post 20.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of COST. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter worth $6,781,946,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 99,278.0% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,726,899 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $672,690,000 after purchasing an additional 6,720,130 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $5,195,415,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,901,594 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $22,359,224,000 after purchasing an additional 5,749,362 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 838.9% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,125,405 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,282,182,000 after purchasing an additional 5,472,968 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco exceeded Wall Street expectations, reporting $6.75 in diluted EPS versus the $6.54 consensus and $95.72 billion in revenue versus the $94.97 billion estimate. Net income rose to nearly $3.0 billion from $2.61 billion a year earlier. Costco earnings beat expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying retail momentum remained solid: fourth-quarter comparable sales increased 9.4%, while digitally enabled comparable sales jumped 19.5%, supported by strength across several merchandise categories. Costco digitally enabled sales growth
• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated its Buy rating and $1,275 price target, arguing that strong execution and resilient demand for essentials offset concerns about membership growth. BTIG also reaffirmed its Buy rating with a $1,125 target. UBS reiterates Buy rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco’s fourth-quarter EPS included a roughly $0.15-per-share benefit from IEEPA tariff refunds. Although management partially reinvested the benefit into member value, investors may discount the earnings beat because this boost was nonrecurring. Costco fiscal fourth-quarter results
• Negative Sentiment: Membership growth is becoming a key concern because membership fees account for a substantial portion of operating income, while the benefit from Costco’s prior fee increase is beginning to fade. Citi maintained a Hold rating and a $1,020 target, citing a balanced risk-reward profile. Citi maintains Hold rating
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts remain concerned that COST’s elevated valuation leaves little room for disappointment. A separate analysis reiterated a Sell view, suggesting that strong fundamentals are already reflected in the share price. Costco valuation analysis

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates membership-based warehouse clubs that offer a broad selection of merchandise at generally competitive prices. Its product range includes groceries, fresh foods, apparel, appliances, electronics, furniture, jewelry, hardware, and seasonal goods, along with private-label products sold under the Kirkland Signature brand.

The company also provides a variety of ancillary services, including gasoline stations, pharmacies, optical centers, hearing-aid centers, food courts, tire centers, and travel services.