Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Purchased by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its Costco stake 24.5% in Q4 to 140,429 shares, now valued at $121.10 million.
• Costco beat quarterly estimates (EPS $4.58 vs. $4.55; revenue $69.6B vs. $68.96B), with revenue up 9.2% year‑over‑year, and raised its quarterly dividend to $1.47 ($5.88 annual; ex‑dividend May 1).
• Analysts remain broadly bullish — consensus rating is "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $1,045.97 (22 Buys, 11 Holds, 1 Sell), and several firms including JPMorgan and BMO recently raised targets above $1,100.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 24.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 140,429 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 27,625 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $121,098,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hurley Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 120.0% during the third quarter. Hurley Capital LLC now owns 33 shares of the retailer's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $35,000. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 730 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,003.02, for a total transaction of $732,204.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,121 shares in the company, valued at $6,139,485.42. This represents a 10.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,175.00 to $1,315.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $1,115.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,045.97.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,003.70 on Thursday. 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 Corporation has a 1-year low of $844.06 and a 1-year high of $1,067.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $996.95 and a 200-day moving average of $946.64. The company has a market capitalization of $445.29 billion, a PE ratio of 52.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.99.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The retailer reported $4.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.55 by $0.03. The business 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.02 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st will be given a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 1st. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 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.

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