Inspire Trust Co. N.A. Raises Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Inspire Trust Co. N.A. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 23.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,700 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,915,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brown Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.7% in the third quarter. Brown Wealth Management LLC now owns 305 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the third quarter. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS now owns 655 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $606,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Somerset Group LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the third quarter. Somerset Group LLC now owns 4,220 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,906,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 4.3% in the third quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC now owns 268 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank & Trust Co boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 71 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,104.00 to $1,106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,051.18.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,003.02, for a total transaction of $732,204.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,121 shares in the company, valued at $6,139,485.42. This trade represents a 10.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Costco Wholesale

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

NASDAQ COST opened at $995.20 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization 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. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.06. The business’s fifty day moving average is $1,008.28 and its 200 day moving average is $962.53. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $844.06 and a fifty-two week high of $1,096.50.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.98 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $70.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $69.68 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 28.57%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

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.