Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) continues to excel due to its strategic growth initiatives, effective pricing strategies and steady membership trends. These factors have propelled the company's performance, leading to decent sales figures.Sales Performance OverviewIn April, Costco reported an increase in comparable sales, with 5.6% growth during the four-week period ended May 5, 2024. This follows consecutive increases of 7.7% and 5% in March and February, respectively. Comparable sales in the United St ...

Company Overview - Costco Wholesale Corp has grown into a major warehouse retailer in the US and internationally by offering low prices on large packages of name-brand products, including groceries, appliances, electronics, and apparel [1] - The company was founded in 1983 in Seattle, merged with Price Club in 1993, and returned to the name Costco in 1997 [1] - Costco has over 127 million members and operates approximately 860 warehouse stores across the US, Asia, Europe, and Latin America, with online purchasing options [1] - In the trailing 12-month period to May 2024, Costco generated $8.5 billion in operating income on $248.8 billion in revenue, with a market capitalization of $345.2 billion [1] Individual Insider Shareholders - The top individual insider shareholders are Craig Jelinek, Charles Munger, and Patrick Callans [2] - Insider refers to senior management, board members, and entities owning more than 10% of the company's stock [2] - Individual insider shares are held through direct ownership and exclude indirect holdings or stock options [3] Craig Jelinek - Craig Jelinek owns 391,535 shares of Costco, representing approximately 0.09% of outstanding shares [4] - Jelinek served as CEO from 2012 to January 2024, during which Costco achieved steady growth, including expansion into China with its first store opening in Shanghai in 2019 [4] - He joined Costco in 1984 and held various executive positions in operations and merchandising before becoming CEO [4] Charles Munger - Charles Munger owned 187,180 shares of Costco, representing approximately 0.04% of outstanding shares [5] - Munger was an independent director of Costco since 1997 and also served as vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and chairman of Daily Journal Corporation [5] - He passed away in November 2023 [5] Patrick Callans - Patrick Callans owns 62,895 shares of Costco, representing approximately 0.01% of outstanding shares [6] - Callans has been executive vice president of Administration since January 2019 and previously served as senior vice president of Human Resources and Risk Management [6] - He joined Costco as corporate counsel in 1994 [6] Institutional Shareholders - Nearly 2,300 13F filers held Costco stock as of Q2 2021, with about 99 including Costco in their top 10 holdings [7] - Institutional shareholders own approximately 72.30% of outstanding Costco shares [7] Vanguard Group Inc - Vanguard Group owns 40.36 million shares of Costco, representing 9.1% of total shares outstanding as of May 2024 [8] - The company manages approximately $7.8 trillion in global assets under management (AUM) as of September 30, 2023 [8] - Costco comprises 0.74% of the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), which has about $1.1 trillion in AUM [8] BlackRock Inc - BlackRock owns 30.6 million shares of Costco, representing 6.9% of total shares outstanding as of May 2024 [9] - The company manages approximately $10 trillion in AUM [9] - Costco comprises 0.78% of the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), which has about $451 billion in AUM [9] State Street Corp - State Street owns 18.7 million shares of Costco, representing 4.21% of total shares outstanding as of May 2024 [10] - The company manages approximately $4.34 trillion in AUM [10] - Costco comprises 0.77% of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), which has about $511 billion in AUM [10]

Costco (COST) closed at $756.45 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.69% move from the prior day. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.03%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.46%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 1.19%.Coming into today, shares of the warehouse club operator had gained 4.23% in the past month. In that same time, the Retail-Wholesale sector gained 0.23%, while the S&P 500 lost 1.57%.Market participants will be closely following the financial re ...

Growth investors focus on stocks that are seeing above-average financial growth, as this feature helps these securities garner the market's attention and deliver solid returns. However, it isn't easy to find a great growth stock.In addition to volatility, these stocks carry above-average risk by their very nature. Also, one could end up losing from a stock whose growth story is actually over or nearing its end.However, it's pretty easy to find cutting-edge growth stocks with the help of the Zacks Growth Sty ...

Investors might want to bet on Costco (COST) , as it has been recently upgraded to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). An upward trend in earnings estimates -- one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices -- has triggered this rating change.The Zacks rating relies solely on a company's changing earnings picture. It tracks EPS estimates for the current and following years from the sell-side analysts covering the stock through a consensus measure -- the Zacks Consensus Estimate.The power of a changing earnings p ...

For new and old investors, taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals. Zacks Premium provides lots of different ways to do both.The research service features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, all of which will help you become a smarter, more confident investor.Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.What are the Zacks Style Scores?Develope ...

For those looking to find strong Retail-Wholesale stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Costco (COST) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Retail-Wholesale sector should help us answer this question.Costco is one of 214 companies in the Retail-Wholesale group. The ...

The company has far more to offer than a levitating payout.For the most part, companies that consistently raise their dividends tend to do so at modest, if not incremental, rates. By contrast Costco (COST -0.47%) has enjoyed blasting its payout well higher, as its recent annual raises have tended to hover around the mid-teen percentages. Sure enough, in mid-April, the big retailer declared that its upcoming quarterly dividend would be nearly 14% higher than its prior rate. Dividend raises are an easy way to ...

Corrections and crashes test the resolve of investors who claim to be in it for the long haul. Some investors flee from the stock market upon any distress, while others buckle down and wait for the storm to pass. Storms will come for any investor, but there are ways to minimize the damage. Some investments are built to endure economic slumps, and some assets can even thrive during downturns. Higher inflation and elevated interest rates are top concerns; these three stocks for a market crash can provide insu ...

The latest trading session saw Costco (COST) ending at $726.33, denoting a -0.39% adjustment from its last day's close. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.32%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 0.38%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw an increase of 0.35%.Shares of the warehouse club operator witnessed a loss of 0.47% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Retail-Wholesale sector with its loss of 1.39% and the S&P 500's loss of 2%.Market participants will be close ...