Behind the Scenes of Costco Wholesale's Latest Options Trends

Deep-pocketed investors have adopted a bearish approach towards Costco Wholesale COST, and it's something market players shouldn't ignore. Our tracking of public options records at Benzinga unveiled this significant move today. The identity of these investors remains unknown, but such a substantial move in COST usually suggests something big is about to happen.

We gleaned this information from our observations today when Benzinga's options scanner highlighted 16 extraordinary options activities for Costco Wholesale. This level of activity is out of the ordinary.

The general mood among these heavyweight investors is divided, with 31% leaning bullish and 68% bearish. Among these notable options, 11 are puts, totaling $560,778, and 5 are calls, amounting to $329,329.

Predicted Price Range

After evaluating the trading volumes and Open Interest, it's evident that the major market movers are focusing on a price band between $515.0 and $670.0 for Costco Wholesale, spanning the last three months.

Volume & Open Interest Development

Looking at the volume and open interest is an insightful way to conduct due diligence on a stock.

This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Costco Wholesale's options for a given strike price.

Below, we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts, respectively, for all of Costco Wholesale's whale activity within a strike price range from $515.0 to $670.0 in the last 30 days.

Costco Wholesale Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Noteworthy Options Activity:

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.

Following our analysis of the options activities associated with Costco Wholesale, we pivot to a closer look at the company's own performance.

Where Is Costco Wholesale Standing Right Now?

• Currently trading with a volume of 167,283, the COST's price is up by 0.6%, now at $669.12.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently may be overbought.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 69 days.

What Analysts Are Saying About Costco Wholesale

Over the past month, 5 industry analysts have shared their insights on this stock, proposing an average target price of $668.6.

• An analyst from Truist Securities has decided to maintain their Buy rating on Costco Wholesale, which currently sits at a price target of $693.
• An analyst from Telsey Advisory Group downgraded its action to Outperform with a price target of $600.
• An analyst from Evercore ISI Group has decided to maintain their Outperform rating on Costco Wholesale, which currently sits at a price target of $650.
• An analyst from UBS persists with their Buy rating on Costco Wholesale, maintaining a target price of $725.
• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from Stifel keeps a Buy rating on Costco Wholesale with a target price of $675.

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.