Natural Investments LLC Has $3.88 Million Stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Natural Investments LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 24.0% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,144 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 803 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 0.9% of Natural Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Natural Investments LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,876,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in COST. SkyOak Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. SkyOak Wealth LLC now owns 2,291 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,143,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Lionsbridge Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $330,000. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. now owns 4,146 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,919,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Clarus Wealth Advisors boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 11.4% in the second quarter. Clarus Wealth Advisors now owns 1,931 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,840,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Banco de Sabadell S.A boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% in the second quarter. Banco de Sabadell S.A now owns 4,897 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,589,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently 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: Expansion supports long-term growth: Costco plans to open 14 warehouses across the United States and Canada before the end of 2026, including five in October and nine in November. New locations could increase membership, sales and recurring fee revenue. Costco set to expand with 14 new warehouses across US and Canada
• Positive Sentiment: A relocated Newport News warehouse is scheduled to open in November, providing additional capacity and potentially improving the customer experience in that market. Relocated Newport News Costco set to open in November
• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Broker upgraded COST to Buy, offering supportive analyst sentiment after the stock’s recent underperformance. Costco Wholesale Raised to Buy at Freedom Broker
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlights Costco’s efforts to improve shopping convenience and add seasonal merchandise, initiatives that may strengthen member loyalty and spending relative to Walmart and Amazon. Costco fixed the one thing members hated about shopping there
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data showed zero shares and a zero-day days-to-cover ratio, but the reported increase was listed as “NaN,” making the figures unreliable and unlikely to provide a meaningful trading signal.
• Neutral Sentiment: A profile of a well-paid Costco meat cutter underscores the company’s wages, benefits and employee retention, but has limited direct impact on near-term financial results. Costco employee discusses wages and career choice
• Negative Sentiment: Costco reportedly shut down its online Marketplace service, raising questions about e-commerce execution and the company’s ability to compete digitally. Costco abruptly shuts down Marketplace online service
• Negative Sentiment: Residents near the planned Lee’s Summit warehouse are concerned about traffic, potentially causing permitting, construction or community-relations friction. Residents concerned Costco’s new Lee’s Summit location will cause traffic issues
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary argues Costco may have lost part of its competitive edge and questions whether the stock’s premium valuation is justified after recent underperformance. Cramer warns Costco may have lost its edge

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Kenneth Denman sold 885 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $957.45, for a total transaction of $847,343.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,575,653.55. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.0%

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $902.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 1.07. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $844.06 and a 52-week high of $1,096.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $941.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $974.99. The firm has a market cap of $400.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.39, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.86.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th were given a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 24th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 29.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,091.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Roth Capital boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $769.00 to $781.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Freedom Broker raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,030.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,110.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,056.03.

Costco Wholesale 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.