Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Stock Holdings Trimmed by Carnegie Investment Counsel

12 Jul 2026, 21:02 by Sarita Garza · The Markets Daily

Carnegie Investment Counsel lessened its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST – Free Report) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 35,842 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 752 shares during the quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $35,714,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Seaside Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.5% during the first quarter. Seaside Wealth Management Inc. now owns 453 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 103,396 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $103,027,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the period. Midwest Trust Co grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Midwest Trust Co now owns 81,663 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $81,372,000 after buying an additional 5,200 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 50.7% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 337,985 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $336,779,000 after buying an additional 113,780 shares during the period. Finally, Rossmore Private Capital raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Rossmore Private Capital now owns 7,667 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,640,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.4%

COST traded up $3.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $916.25. The company had a trading volume of 2,099,105 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,488,933. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $983.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $975.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $406.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.09, a PEG ratio of 4.44 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 announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The retailer reported $4.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.94 by ($0.01). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.04% and a net margin of 3.01%.The firm had revenue of $70.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.28 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 20.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 29.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on COST. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,205.00 to $1,275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Mizuho set a $1,100.00 price target on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,100.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,104.00 to $1,106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, 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. Twenty-two research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,061.10.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale News Roundup

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

Positive Sentiment: Analysts remained generally constructive, with multiple firms reiterating Buy/Overweight views and price targets around or above current levels, suggesting Wall Street still sees upside for Costco despite the recent pullback.
Positive Sentiment: Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.47 per share, reinforcing its shareholder-return profile. Costco stock overview and dividend note
Positive Sentiment: Management also expanded its digital wallet feature, which could improve checkout speed and customer convenience. Costco makes payment change that could speed up checkout for members
Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful change, with reported short interest at zero shares, offering little signal for near-term trading.
Negative Sentiment: Investors are focusing on a slowdown in June sales momentum and weaker adjusted comparable-sales growth, which raises concern that Costco may be losing some near-term growth speed. Reuters article reference
Negative Sentiment: Competition is intensifying as Walmart and Kroger cut prices, increasing pressure on Costco’s value proposition and margin outlook.
Negative Sentiment: New headlines about a class-action lawsuit alleging Costco sold protein powder with heavy metals add legal and reputational risk. Consumers sue Costco over heavy metals in protein powder

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 885 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $957.45, for a total value of $847,343.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,575,653.55. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

(Free Report)

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.