Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Target Lowered at Wells Fargo & Company

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) had its price target reduced by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $1,000.00 to $950.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the retailer’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price points to a potential upside of 3.16% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Roth Capital lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $769.00 to $781.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,065.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,125.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,020.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday. Twenty-three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,048.26.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock opened at $920.92 on Friday. Costco Wholesale has a 12 month low of $844.06 and a 12 month high of $1,096.50. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $934.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $968.18. The stock has a market cap of $408.41 billion, a PE ratio of 46.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $95.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.97 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.04% and a net margin of 3.01%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale will post 20.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 31.7% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 23,901,594 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $22,359,224,000 after buying an additional 5,749,362 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 11.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,515,031 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,488,203,000 after acquiring an additional 773,651 shares during the last quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 99,278.0% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,726,899 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $672,690,000 after purchasing an additional 6,720,130 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 838.9% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,125,405 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,282,182,000 after acquiring an additional 5,472,968 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,195,415,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Costco reported fourth-quarter EPS of $6.75 versus the $6.54 consensus estimate and revenue of $95.72 billion versus $94.97 billion expected. Net income rose 14.9% to approximately $3 billion. Costco earnings beat expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying demand remained healthy, with fourth-quarter comparable sales increasing 9.4% and digitally enabled comparable sales jumping 19.5%. Strong traffic, pharmacy sales and e-commerce momentum support the company’s growth outlook. Costco beats quarterly sales estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts remain bullish. Mizuho lowered its target to $1,065 while retaining an Outperform rating, and Bernstein set a $1,143 target with the same rating. UBS also maintained a $1,275 Buy target, implying substantial upside from the reference price.
• Neutral Sentiment: The earnings beat included a roughly $0.15-per-share benefit from IEEPA tariff refunds, meaning some of the upside was non-recurring. Costco’s reported $6.75 EPS therefore may overstate the quarter’s sustainable earnings power. Costco posts fourth-quarter net income rise
• Negative Sentiment: Costco’s premium valuation remains a major obstacle: shares trade at roughly 45 times earnings despite a market capitalization near $398 billion. Analysts warn that slowing membership growth and the eventual fading benefit of the 2024 membership-fee increase could limit further multiple expansion.
• Negative Sentiment: Management flagged rising electronics costs tied to memory inflation, creating potential margin pressure. This, combined with the one-time tariff benefit and elevated valuation, helps explain why the stock’s earnings reaction has been weaker than the headline results might suggest. Costco flags rising electronics costs

Costco Wholesale Company 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.