Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Position Boosted by Buckley Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Buckley Wealth Management LLC increased its Costco stake by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, adding 1,079 shares to bring its holdings to 14,085 shares worth about $12.15 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other institutional investors owning 68.48% of Costco’s stock. Several large firms, including Vanguard and Geode Capital Management, also added to their positions.
• Costco continues to draw bullish attention despite valuation concerns: analysts have a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average target price of $1,060.41, while the company recently missed EPS by a penny but still beat revenue expectations and raised its quarterly dividend to $1.47 per share.

Buckley Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,085 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 1,079 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 3.2% of Buckley Wealth Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Buckley Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $12,147,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,620,717 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $37,615,889,000 after purchasing an additional 165,349 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,388,519 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,919,573,000 after purchasing an additional 26,690 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $5,195,415,000. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,937,286 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,395,301,000 after purchasing an additional 77,650 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,518,341 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,034,006,000 after purchasing an additional 170,979 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

More Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts at Erste Group Bank raised their earnings estimates for Costco, lifting FY2026 EPS to $20.49 and FY2027 EPS to $22.61, slightly above prior forecasts and reinforcing confidence in Costco’s long-term earnings power.
• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer said he thinks investors should “buy some here,” adding another public bullish call on Costco and keeping the stock in focus as a defensive long-term holding.
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple commentary pieces highlighted Costco’s membership-fee model as a durable, recurring-revenue engine, which continues to appeal to investors looking for steady compounding and defensive growth.
• Positive Sentiment: Costco’s CEO is set to receive a leadership honor for advancing women in corporate governance, adding a modest ESG/governance positive for institutional investors.
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles noted that Costco allows some shopping without a membership in the U.S., a consumer-facing detail that may support traffic but is not likely to materially change fundamentals on its own. Confirmed: Costco Reveals the Only Way to Shop Without a Membership Anywhere in the United States
• Neutral Sentiment: Costco is fighting a lawsuit over claims that its $5 rotisserie chicken is falsely advertised as having “no preservatives,” which creates headline risk but has not yet been shown to affect operations. Costco fires back over lawsuit tied to iconic product as shoppers claim false advertising
• Negative Sentiment: Commentary comparing Costco with Dollar Tree suggested tighter consumer budgets could increase competition on value, which may pressure pricing power at the margin if shoppers trade down.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ COST opened at $975.69 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $1,005.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $966.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market cap of $432.70 billion, a PE ratio of 49.08, a PEG ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.88. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $844.06 and a 12 month high of $1,096.50.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.94 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $70.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.12 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.04% and a net margin of 3.01%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.28 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 1st were issued a $1.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. This is a boost 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 (DPR) is currently 29.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on COST shares. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $1,175.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Daiwa Securities Group boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $917.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Guggenheim reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,125.00 to $1,135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,060.41.

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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