That bodes well for the company’s growth prospects this year and beyond. Costco Wholesale (COST -1.04%) is trading at close to 50 times its trailing earnings. Although not near its 52-week high anymore, the stock still looks expensive given its level of profitability. During the past 12 months, Costco shares surged 50%, soaring past the S&P 500 and its 32% gains over that time frame. The strong demand in China is an exciting indicator of the long-term potential Costco has in that market.

  1. Costco Wholesale’s stock is owned by many different retail and institutional investors.
  2. Product categories include grocery and frozen foods, apparel, sporting goods, electronics, auto care, appliances, housewares and even furniture.
  3. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple and Costco Wholesale.
  4. There are currently 6 hold ratings and 17 buy ratings for the stock.
  5. Costco, originally known as Costco Companies, quickly grew in its first two years and became the 1st company to go from $0 to $3 billion in revenue within the 1st 3 years.
  6. E-commerce is another area where Costco is just scratching the surface in terms of potential, as is evident with that much faster growth rate.

Costco Wholesale Corporation was founded in 1976 and is based in Issaquah, Washington. 23 Wall Street research analysts have issued “buy,” “hold,” and “sell” ratings for Costco Wholesale in the last twelve months. There are currently 6 hold ratings and 17 buy ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street https://www.day-trading.info/top-growth-stocks-for-march-2021/ research analysts is that investors should “moderate buy” COST shares. In addition to retail, the company also provides many services including pharmacy, eye care, food & beverage and auto care centers. The company also operates more than 665 gas stations across its footprint and a robust eCommerce channel.

Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know

While many of its new locations will be in the U.S., Costco is also launching new stores in Asia, including Japan, Korea, and China. The company said there were 10,000 people at the opening of its sixth store in China. But despite its high price tag, there are still many reasons for investors to remain bullish on the stock both for this year and the long haul. Here’s why Costco stock can be a great buy, even at its seemingly high valuation.

Costco Wholesale (COST) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Top Wall Street analysts changed their outlook on these top names. For a complete view of all analyst rating changes, including upgrades and downgrades, please see our analyst ratings page. 3,447 employees have rated Costco Wholesale Chief Executive Officer Craig Jelinek on Glassdoor.com. Craig Jelinek has an approval rating of 92% among the company’s employees. This puts Craig Jelinek in the top 30% of approval ratings compared to other CEOs of publicly-traded companies. With average gains of 150% since the start of 2023, now is the time to give these stocks a look and pump up your 2024 portfolio.

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On the company’s most recent earnings call, which was for the fiscal second quarter (ended Feb. 18), management said the number of paid household memberships rose by 7.8% year over year. Costco now has 73.4 million paid household members and 132 million cardholders. It’s an encouraging sign that even amid inflation and as budgets tighten up, consumers are seeing enough value in Costco’s membership to sign up.

Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.02 per share on Friday, February 16th. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Costco Wholesale Corporation is central to the global warehouse membership club story. The company was founded in 1983 by Jim Sinegal and Jeffrey Brotman but its history dates back to 1976 because of the merger with Price Club. Costco, originally known as Costco Companies, quickly grew in its first two years and became the 1st company to go from $0 to $3 billion in revenue within the 1st 3 years. In the current fiscal year, Costco expects to open 30 new stores, with two being relocations.

Nearly 70% of the stores are located in the US with another 13% in Canada and the remainder scattered around the globe. Today, Costco is based in Issaquah, Washington and it is among the largest businesses in the world. The company operates as a member-only big-box retailer claiming more than 118 million members, it is ranked #10 on the Forbes Fortune 500 list and is the 5th largest retailer internationally. In terms of scale, it is the largest retailer of choice and prime beef, organic foods and rotisserie chickens. Rotisserie chickens are a long-standing tradition at Costco which pioneered their use. The chickens are sold for less than cost and used to attract business into the store.

It was among the very first warehouse membership clubs and targeted small merchants and businesses. The Price family turned down an offer to merge with Walmart’s Sam’s Club in favor of a more suitable match-up with Costco. Coincidentally, Costco founder Jim Sinegal got his start in the retail business working for Sol Price at his original membership club, FedMart. Get stock recommendations, portfolio guidance, and more from The Motley Fool’s premium services. Costco Wholesale announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 18th.

But what really stood out was e-commerce, where comparable sales were up 18.4% year over year. E-commerce is another area where Costco is just scratching the surface in terms of potential, as is evident with that much faster growth rate. The company also says it recently rolled out Apple Pay as a payment option online to all of its members, which can facilitate the buying process and appeal to a wider range of customers. Founded in 1993, The Motley Fool is a financial services company dedicated to making the world smarter, happier, and richer. The Motley Fool reaches millions of people every month through our premium investing solutions, free guidance and market analysis on Fool.com, top-rated podcasts, and non-profit The Motley Fool Foundation.

The company is scheduled to release its next quarterly earnings announcement on Thursday, May 23rd 2024. Sign-up to receive the latest news and ratings for Costco Wholesale and its competitors with MarketBeat’s FREE daily newsletter.

It offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories. It also operates e-commerce websites in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, paxforex review and ratings South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and Australia. The company was formerly known as Costco Companies, Inc. and changed its name to Costco Wholesale Corporation in August 1999.

With just six stores, China is an almost untapped market for the big-box retailer. Costco still has plenty of growth opportunities in the long run, which is what makes it an incredibly attractive long-term buy. Costco Wholesale’s stock is owned by many different retail and institutional investors. Top institutional shareholders include Vanguard Group Inc. (9.10%), Vanguard Group Inc. (9.10%), Norges Bank (1.24%), Northern Trust Corp (1.13%), Nuveen Asset Management LLC (0.88%) and Capital World Investors (0.80%). Costco Wholesale same store sales rose 10% during the month of January.

Revenue growth is important for businesses, but for Costco, membership growth may be even more crucial. Those are the customers who are signing up for one of its memberships and who are planning to spend at its warehouses on a regular basis. And with a high renewal rate, normally around 90% or https://www.topforexnews.org/news/bell-howell-clever-grip-pro-magnetic-portable/ better, odds are any new members are going to be customers for a long time. Costco’s business has proven resilient, yet again, as the company’s gross margin was well protected. Last quarter, the company reported that its gross profit margin was up by 8 basis points compared to a year earlier.