Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 32,105 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC trimmed its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 126,402 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 32,105 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $112,973,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hobbs Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Hobbs Wealth Management LLC now owns 262 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Busey Bank increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Busey Bank now owns 2,651 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,454,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Pasadena Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pasadena Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,403 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Tandem Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the third quarter. Tandem Investment Partners LLC now owns 990 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $916,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optima Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the third quarter. Optima Capital LLC now owns 1,192 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,104,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Costco Wholesale

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco is keeping fuel prices low with a deliberate pricing strategy to stay cheaper than competitors, which can drive continued traffic and membership value. As Gas Prices Soar, Costco’s Using This Smart Strategy To Stay Cheaper Than Most
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive: consensus ratings across brokerages show a majority buy/moderate-buy stance, supporting investor confidence. Costco Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Costco upgraded its retail-media platform, a potential new ad-revenue stream that can boost margins over time. Costco upgrades its retail media platform
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish write-ups (seeking-alpha coverage and long-term valuation defenses) are reinforcing the narrative that Costco’s membership model and pricing power can sustain outperformance. Costco: A Likely Outperformer Based On The Business Model
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Ron Vachris addressed questions about the $1.50 hot dog combo, offering clarity to a vocal part of Costco’s brand/PR — removes a potential source of uncertainty but has limited direct earnings impact. Costco CEO gives update on future of $1.50 hot dog and soda combo
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco added new Kirkland Signature items (and launched a private-label refrigerated dog food), moves that can deepen margins and member loyalty but may take time to scale. Costco adds Kirkland Signature items
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry coverage and investor-interest pieces (Zacks, Yahoo, TipRanks) are drawing attention to COST, which can amplify trading activity but not necessarily change fundamentals. Costco is Attracting Investor Attention
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a risk: COST trades at a premium (P/E around 50x), leaving limited room for error if same-store sales or margin expansion disappoint — this makes the stock sensitive to any weaker-than-expected data.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $939.00, for a total value of $1,408,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 44,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,101,943. The trade was a 3.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 458 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director owned 8,532 shares in the company, valued at $8,148,060. The trade was a 5.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 7,645 shares of company stock valued at $7,049,302 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Roth Mkm reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,175.00 to $1,315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,039.13.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock opened at $972.33 on Monday. 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 firm has a market cap of $431.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.56, a PEG ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 1.00. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $984.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $938.49. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $844.06 and a 12-month high of $1,067.08.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The retailer reported $4.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $69.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.96 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.57% and a net margin of 2.99%.The business’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.02 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 27.04%.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.