Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Holdings Reduced by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D trimmed its Costco stake by 2.1%, selling 3,282 shares and leaving 152,180 shares valued at about $131.23 million, roughly 0.5% of the fund and its 28th largest holding.
• EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares on March 9 at an average price of $1,003.02, reducing her position by 10.66% to 6,121 shares valued at roughly $6.14 million.
• Costco raised its quarterly dividend to $1.47 (annualized $5.88, yield ~0.6%) and reported Q1 results slightly above estimates with revenue up 9.2% year-over-year, while analysts remain largely positive with a consensus "Moderate Buy" and multiple raised price targets.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D cut its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 152,180 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 3,282 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 0.5% of State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $131,231,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 49.3% during the third quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 3,780 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,499,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248 shares in the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,781,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 140,429 shares of the retailer's stock worth $121,098,000 after purchasing an additional 27,625 shares during the last quarter. Curtis Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Curtis Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,535 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,911,000 after purchasing an additional 1,641 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 399,894 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $370,140,000 after purchasing an additional 5,937 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related 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 value of $732,204.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,121 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,139,485.42. This trade represents a 10.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $1,001.70 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $444.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.84, a PEG ratio of 4.92 and a beta of 0.99. The stock's 50-day moving average is $996.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $949.46. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $844.06 and a fifty-two week high of $1,067.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The retailer reported $4.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.55 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $69.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.96 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 28.57%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.02 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 1st will be paid a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 1st. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,103.00 to $1,104.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,110.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,175.00 to $1,315.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,045.97.

More Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan analysis says Costco is roughly “60% cheaper than traditional grocery,” underscoring a widening value gap that supports market-share gains and defensive retailing in a price-sensitive environment. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group marginally raised its FY2027 EPS forecast for Costco to $22.52 (from $22.47), a small but constructive analyst upgrade vs. consensus, which supports higher forward earnings expectations. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts continue to flag Costco as the most price-competitive among peers (vs. WMT, AMZN), reinforcing its durable membership flywheel and margin resilience over time. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Costco increased its dividend (reported among large-cap dividend raises), which is supportive for income-focused investors and signals confidence in cash generation. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco quietly changed the $1.50 hot dog + soda combo (product/content tweak) while keeping the price intact — a symbolic move for branding/operations but not material to fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: New product placements (Häagen‑Dazs ice cream bar at Costco) and consumer gadget roundups keep merchandising fresh but are minor drivers of stock moves. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Separate retail headlines compare Costco favorably to Target, reinforcing the membership model’s strength; useful context but already reflected in sentiment. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Murphy USA (MUSA) beat Q1 estimates — not directly related to Costco but part of broader retail/consumer fuel-cost and convenience-store dynamics. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts and commentators argue Walmart’s evolution into ad/data monetization gives it more near-term upside than Costco, suggesting relative multiple compression risk for COST. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Jim Cramer and others note Costco’s rich valuation (~49x reported earnings), a reminder that even positive execution faces multiple/valuation risk. Article Title

About Costco Wholesale

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.

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