Essential Investment Partners LLC Purchases 698 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Posted by Geri Gentry on Oct 29th, 2026

Essential Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST – Free Report) by 168.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,112 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 698 shares during the period. Essential Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,012,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1,588.6% in the third quarter. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC now owns 6,231 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,672,000 after acquiring an additional 5,862 shares during the last quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% during the third quarter. North Dakota State Investment Board now owns 13,592 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $12,373,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares during the period. Financial Insights Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 10.3% during the third quarter. Financial Insights Inc. now owns 2,904 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,644,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Conning Inc. raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 6,616 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,023,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AMI Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $266,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $982.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.06. The company has a 50-day moving average of $940.95 and a 200-day moving average of $969.55. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $844.06 and a 52 week high of $1,096.50. The company has a market capitalization of $435.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.34, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.88.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.21. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 3.04% and a return on equity of 27.60%. The business had revenue of $95.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.87 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 22.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.47 per share. This represents a $5.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 28.32%.

Key Stories Impacting Costco Wholesale

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

Positive Sentiment: Costco expanded its healthcare offering through a NationsBenefits partnership, allowing members to redeem eligible benefits in real time at checkout across more than 600 U.S. warehouses. The initiative could increase member engagement, convenience and store traffic while supporting Costco’s growing healthcare business. Costco brings real-time health benefit checkouts to more than 600 stores
Positive Sentiment: The retailer opened a new warehouse in Western New York, adding capacity and reinforcing its long-term strategy of expanding its membership base and geographic footprint. Costco opens its doors in Western New York
Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlights Costco’s fifth consecutive earnings beat, strong pharmacy growth and improving digital conversions, including gains from AI-powered website search. Analysts also point to improving technical momentum heading into November. Costco momentum is improving heading into November
Neutral Sentiment: Promotional offers providing new Gold Star members with a $45 digital Costco Shop Card for a $65 membership may help attract sign-ups, although the near-term effect on revenue and margins is unclear. New Costco Gold Star membership promotion
Neutral Sentiment: Long-term investment commentary remains broadly bullish, with Costco viewed as a defensive compounder and a potential healthcare or Medicare disrupter. However, these are forward-looking theses rather than new financial guidance.
Negative Sentiment: Analysts continue to question Costco’s valuation near $1,000 per share, arguing that its premium multiple already reflects substantial growth. Expensive valuation and mixed macroeconomic conditions could pressure the stock if sales or margins merely meet expectations. Costco valuation remains a head scratcher
Negative Sentiment: Exchange-traded funds were reported as net sellers of COST, creating modest technical pressure. Separately, Costco withdrew an application for a proposed Idaho warehouse, highlighting that expansion plans can face local or regulatory setbacks. Costco sees net ETF selling
Negative Sentiment: The upcoming $1.47 dividend offers a relatively low yield at Costco’s current share price, limiting its appeal to income-focused investors and reducing support from dividend-driven buying.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.93, for a total value of $2,015,046.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,134 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,534,244.62. This represents a 23.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $958.21, for a total value of $1,054,031.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,094 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,964,701.74. This represents a 26.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on COST. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,011.00 to $955.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 25th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,160.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,130.00 to $1,100.00 in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Twenty-five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,086.19.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on COST

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

(Free Report)

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a membership-based warehouse retail business under the Costco name. The company sells merchandise in bulk and at competitive prices through warehouse clubs and e-commerce platforms, serving individual consumers, businesses and other organizations.

Its product selection includes groceries and fresh foods, household supplies, appliances, electronics, furniture, apparel, health and beauty products, jewelry, automotive products and prescription drugs. Costco also provides services such as optical care, pharmacy services, hearing-aid sales, travel offerings and fuel sales, depending on location.

The company traces its roots to Price Club, which opened in San Diego in 1976.