New York, January 5, 2026, 18:59 EST — After-hours
Costco Wholesale Corp (COST.O) shares were up $21.18, or about 2.5%, at $875.74 in after-hours trading on Monday after Mizuho upgraded the warehouse retailer and raised its price target to $1,000. The stock traded between $853 and $878.71 during the session.
The call lands as Costco’s stock has retreated from recent peaks, pushing investors back to the basics: membership-fee growth, steady traffic and pricing power. A key question is whether comparable sales — revenue at stores open at least a year — keep running ahead of rivals as consumer spending normalizes.
That timing matters because Costco is scheduled to publish its December sales results on Jan. 7 at 1:15 p.m. PT (4:15 p.m. ET), a closely watched snapshot of post-holiday demand. 1
Mizuho analyst David Bellinger framed the recent slide as a “high-quality problem in retail,” arguing that heavy demand and crowded clubs have created execution challenges rather than structural weakness. He said many recent U.S. warehouse openings were “fill-ins” that can divert traffic from existing high-volume locations, temporarily weighing on headline membership growth, even as premium Executive memberships outpace overall member adds. 2
Bellinger also forecast lower labor pressure and high single-digit sales growth in coming quarters, and said Costco’s balance sheet could support another special dividend — a one-time cash payout on top of the regular quarterly dividend — in fiscal 2027. 2
Costco’s move outpaced some big-box peers on the day. Target rose 1.6% in Monday’s regular session while Walmart was nearly flat; Amazon gained nearly 3%. 3
Costco last reported quarterly results on Dec. 11, beating Wall Street estimates for revenue and profit on steady demand, a Reuters report showed. 4
The company has used special dividends before, including a $15-per-share payout it announced in December 2023. 5
For traders, the next sales update will be parsed for signs that traffic and renewal behavior are stabilizing as Costco expands in mature markets. The report can also sharpen the debate over whether growth is being “cannibalized” — diluted by new stores pulling visits from nearby clubs — or simply redistributed.
But the setup cuts both ways: a softer holiday sales readout would reinforce concerns that growth is slowing just as the stock commands a premium valuation versus many retailers, and any delay in cost relief could keep margin expectations in check.
Beyond the December sales report, Costco’s calendar shows its annual shareholders’ meeting on Jan. 15, a January sales update on Feb. 4 and the fiscal second-quarter earnings call on March 5.
