Costco Wholesale Unusual Options Activity

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on Costco Wholesale COST.

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the positions showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with COST, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 11 options trades for Costco Wholesale.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 45% bullish and 54%, bearish.

Out of all of the options we uncovered, there was 1 put, for a total amount of $32,000, and 10, calls, for a total amount of $762,111.

Projected Price Targets

Based on the trading activity, it appears that the significant investors are aiming for a price territory stretching from $440.0 to $590.0 for Costco Wholesale over the recent three months.

Volume & Open Interest Trends

In terms of liquidity and interest, the mean open interest for Costco Wholesale options trades today is 425.71 with a total volume of 558.00.

In the following chart, we are able to follow the development of volume and open interest of call and put options for Costco Wholesale's big money trades within a strike price range of $440.0 to $590.0 over the last 30 days.

Costco Wholesale Option Activity Analysis: Last 30 Days

Biggest Options Spotted:

About Costco Wholesale

Costco operates a membership-based, no-frills retail model, predicated on offering a select product assortment in bulk quantities at bargain prices. The firm avoids maintaining costly product displays by keeping inventory on pallets and limits distribution expenses by storing its inventory at point of sale in the warehouse. Given Costco's frugal cost structure, the firm is able to price its merchandise below competing retailers, driving high sales volume per warehouse and allowing the retailer to generate strong profits on thin margins. Costco operates 591 warehouses in the United States and boasts over 60% market share in the domestic warehouse club industry. Internationally, Costco operates another 270 warehouses, primarily in markets such as Canada, Mexico, Japan, and the U.K.

Having examined the options trading patterns of Costco Wholesale, our attention now turns directly to the company. This shift allows us to delve into its present market position and performance

Where Is Costco Wholesale Standing Right Now?

• With a volume of 261,753, the price of COST is up 0.31% at $590.9.
• RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be overbought.
• Next earnings are expected to be released in 20 days.

Expert Opinions on Costco Wholesale

In the last month, 4 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $600.0.

• An analyst from JP Morgan persists with their Overweight rating on Costco Wholesale, maintaining a target price of $605.
• In a cautious move, an analyst from Telsey Advisory Group downgraded its rating to Outperform, setting a price target of $600.
• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from Stifel keeps a Buy rating on Costco Wholesale with a target price of $595.
• Reflecting concerns, an analyst from Telsey Advisory Group lowers its rating to Outperform with a new price target of $600.

Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.

If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Costco Wholesale, Benzinga Pro gives you real-time options trades alerts.