Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd. Invests $912,000 in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Houlihan Financial Resource Group Ltd. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,046 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $912,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brown Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Wealth Management LLC now owns 305 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS now owns 655 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $606,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Somerset Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Somerset Group LLC now owns 4,220 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,906,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 268 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank & Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 71 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,003.02, for a total value of $732,204.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,139,485.42. This represents a 10.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Key Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco reported stronger-than-expected sales, including U.S. same-store sales growth of 9.8% and adjusted comparable sales up 6.6%, showing that demand remains resilient even in a pressured consumer environment.
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue came in above Wall Street expectations, with $70.53 billion in quarterly sales versus estimates of $69.68 billion, reinforcing the company’s ability to keep growing at scale.
• Positive Sentiment: Membership and gas-related traffic appear to be supporting results, with higher fuel prices bringing more shoppers into warehouses and boosting basket sizes and same-store sales.
• Neutral Sentiment: EPS of $4.93 was slightly below the consensus estimate of $4.98, making the report mixed rather than uniformly strong, even though profits still improved year over year.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several pre-earnings articles framed Costco as a high-quality defensive retailer with a premium valuation, suggesting investors may continue to focus on whether the stock can justify its elevated multiple.
• Negative Sentiment: The small earnings miss could temper enthusiasm in the near term, especially given the stock’s recent run-up and the market’s high expectations heading into the print.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $995.20 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $441.52 billion, a PE ratio of 51.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.94 and a beta of 0.92. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $844.06 and a 52-week high of $1,096.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company’s 50 day moving average is $1,008.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $962.53.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.98 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $70.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $69.68 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.57% and a net margin of 2.99%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.28 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st were given a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 1st. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 30.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, February 20th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, February 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,185.00 target price on the stock. Twenty-one analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,051.18.

Costco Wholesale 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.