Insider Selling: Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Director Sells 458 Shares of Stock

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Director Susan Decker sold 458 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $955.00, for a total value of $437,390.00. Following the sale, the director owned 8,532 shares in the company, valued at $8,148,060. The trade was a 5.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $0.65 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $964.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,190,929 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,025,506. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $895.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $929.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $428.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $844.06 and a one year high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.27 by $0.07. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 29.35%. The firm had revenue of $67.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $67.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.04 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Northcoast Research set a $1,100.00 price target on Costco Wholesale and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, December 12th. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 target price for the company. Roth Capital set a $769.00 price target on Costco Wholesale and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 26th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $996.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,165,000 after buying an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 45.0% in the 2nd quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC now owns 657 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $645,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,853 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,814,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Finally, Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 16.6% in the second quarter. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 514 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $499,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco reportedly raised gas rewards for its branded credit card (boosting cash-back at Costco pumps), a move that can increase member loyalty and fuel traffic to stores. Costco Boosts Gas Rewards for Customers: Reports
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage highlights Costco’s warehouse expansion and faster new-store ramp-ups (including creative reuse of sites), supporting long-term revenue and membership growth. That underpins growth expectations vs. peers. Costco’s Warehouse Expansion Strategy Fuels Long-Term Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Costco shares have rallied after strong December sales and continued resilient traffic and membership trends, which supports near-term revenue momentum and investor sentiment. Costco Stock Rallies on December Sales: Buy, Hold or Take Profits?
• Positive Sentiment: Consumer pieces note Costco as a competitive iPhone retail channel (price/benefits), which can drive higher-ticket electronics sales and incremental member visits. 6 Reasons To Buy Your iPhone From Costco (Instead Of The Apple Store)
• Positive Sentiment: Costco’s member-friendly scheduling/holiday-hour decisions (stores open on MLK Day / other favorable hours) support sales continuity and member satisfaction. Costco makes big decision members will love
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco switched its food-court beverage supplier back to Coca?Cola after a decade with Pepsi — largely operational/branding; modest margin or supplier-relationship effects possible, but not likely material near-term. Costco Switches Food Court Back to Coke After Decade With Pepsi
• Neutral Sentiment: Lifestyle/food coverage (e.g., Starbucks-like finds, Indian staples) highlights product assortment and value perception that support foot traffic but are unlikely to move fundamentals alone. This Costco Find Is Identical to a Starbucks Favorite — for a Lot Less
• Neutral Sentiment: Long-term retrospectives on Costco’s historical returns reinforce the track record and membership moat but are more narrative than near-term catalysts. If You’d Invested $1,000 in Costco Stock 20 Years Ago, Here’s How Much You’d Have Today
• Negative Sentiment: A large grocery rival announced expansion plans, representing competitive pressure in markets where Costco competes for members and share-of-wallet. Monitor local market impacts as the expansion progresses. Huge Costco grocery rival launches expansion plans

About Costco Wholesale

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.