New York, Jan 21, 2026, 11:20 EST — Regular session
- Costco shares rose about 1% in late morning trade after swinging off the session low.
- Investors are still digesting renewed tariff threats that drove a broad selloff a day earlier.
- An SEC filing showed a Costco director sold shares; the next company catalysts are Feb. 4 sales and March 5 earnings.
Costco Wholesale shares were up $9.80, or about 1.0%, at $974.06 by 11:10 a.m. EST. The stock opened lower and traded between $957.05 and $975.50.
The rebound came as U.S. stocks steadied after Tuesday’s rout, with the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust—an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500—up about 1%, and the Invesco QQQ Trust—an ETF that tracks the Nasdaq 100—up roughly 1.4%. Traders have been quick to re-price consumer stocks on any hint tariffs could push prices higher.
Wall Street had its biggest one-day drop in three months on Tuesday after President Donald Trump threatened new tariffs on imports from eight European countries, with a 10% rate set for Feb. 1 and a possible increase to 25% by June 1 if no deal is reached over Greenland, Reuters reported. Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group, said he would be “surprised if there was a 3% to 5% drop this week.” Reuters
Retail was in the crosshairs in that slide. Amazon fell 2.2%, Walmart lost 1.3% and Target dropped 1.6% on Tuesday, while Costco rose 0.5%, according to MarketWatch.
Costco also had a company-specific headline in the filings stack. Director Susan L. Decker sold 458 shares at $955 apiece on Jan. 16, an SEC Form 4 showed; Form 4 filings disclose insider transactions.
The bigger issue is volatility, not any one trade. “Global investors are taking these threats seriously,” said Jack Ablin, founding partner and chief investment strategist at Cresset Capital, referring to the tariff talk. Reuters
But the direction is not clean. If tariff threats turn into actual levies, retailers could face higher costs on imported goods and more pressure to decide whether to swallow it or raise prices, a tricky choice when shoppers are already hunting for value.
Investors will get the next hard read on demand soon. Costco is scheduled to release January sales results on Feb. 4.
After that, attention shifts to March 5, when Costco is due to report second-quarter results alongside February sales figures.
