Owen LaRue LLC Lowers Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Owen LaRue LLC lessened its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 66.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 680 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,363 shares during the quarter. Owen LaRue LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of COST. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 975.0% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 72.0% during the 2nd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2,200.0% in the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Key Costco Wholesale News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect Costco to report strong fiscal Q2 results, with previews calling for double-digit profit growth — investors view this as confirmation of resilient demand and margin stability. Earnings Preview: What to Expect From Costco Wholesale’s Report
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple bullish analyst pieces argue Costco remains a buy for 2026 and beyond, emphasizing membership retention, steady sales/profit growth and defensive consumer-staples characteristics. This supportive coverage helps underpin the rally. Is Costco Stock a Buy in 2026?
• Positive Sentiment: Costco’s membership perks continue to be a strategic growth lever — coverage highlights a past controversial perk and four new 2026 benefits aimed at boosting member value and retention, which supports long-term revenue visibility. Costco Introduced a Controversial Perk Last Year — and It Plans to Follow This Up With 4 New Benefits in 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Operational/UX improvements: reporting says Costco is adopting a tech upgrade used by competitors to improve the member experience — a potential driver of basket size and visit frequency. Costco borrows tech upgrade from competitor to boost member experience
• Neutral Sentiment: Retail buzz and product-level popularity (popular Costco finds, wholesale flowers) are helping brand engagement but are unlikely to move fundamentals materially in the near term. ‘I’ve Been Using This Stuff Every Day For About 2 Years’
• Neutral Sentiment: Trading/technical interest: a pattern-trade roundup lists Costco as a top seasonal idea (speculative short?term upside), which can attract momentum traders but isn’t a fundamental endorsement. 5 Best Pattern Trades for This Quarter
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish/critical takes: Seeking Alpha published pieces urging caution or a sell-the-rally stance, arguing the strong start may be short?lived — these raise concerns about near-term momentum and give some investors reason to lock in gains. Costco: Strong Start To 2026 Likely Short-Lived
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation questions: coverage assessing Costco’s rich P/E highlights risk that upside is limited unless earnings justify the premium — a key watch for longer?term investors. Assessing Whether Costco Wholesale (COST) Deserves Its Rich P/E
• Negative Sentiment: Minor insider activity: a disclosed sale of 458 shares by an executive may be viewed as a small negative signal, though the sale size is immaterial relative to the company’s scale. Susan Decker Sells 458 Shares of Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $983.25 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $436.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.66, a P/E/G ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.02. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $844.06 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $900.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $929.81.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.27 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $67.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.03 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 29.35%. The company’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.04 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, December 29th. Gordon Haskett lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,125.00 to $1,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,218.00 to $1,171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,130.00 to $1,050.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Twenty-one research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $996.00.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 2,400 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $930.13, for a total value of $2,232,312.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,860,260. The trade was a 54.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $916.32, for a total value of $1,374,480.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,550,476.80. The trade was a 15.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,315 shares of company stock valued at $8,549,409. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.