Research Analysts Offer Predictions for COST Q1 Earnings

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Telsey Advisory Group dropped their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Costco Wholesale in a research note issued to investors on Friday, May 30th. Telsey Advisory Group analyst J. Feldman now forecasts that the retailer will post earnings per share of $4.28 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $4.30. Telsey Advisory Group currently has a "Hold" rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Costco Wholesale's current full-year earnings is $18.03 per share. Telsey Advisory Group also issued estimates for Costco Wholesale's Q3 2026 earnings at $4.80 EPS.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,035.32.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST traded down $1.26 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $1,055.59. 1,990,629 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,052,077. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $986.39 and a 200-day moving average of $977.03. Costco Wholesale has a one year low of $793.00 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The stock has a market cap of $468.35 billion, a PE ratio of 61.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,644,711 shares of the retailer's stock worth $40,332,515,000 after purchasing an additional 443,101 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after buying an additional 149,209 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,182,316,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.30 dividend. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.36%.

About Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden. The company offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.