12 Best Forever Stocks To Buy Now

10. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Number of Hedge Funds Holding Stakes as of Q2: 71

Market Cap as of September 18, 2024: $397.79 Billion

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is a consumer defensive investment play that operates a membership warehouse in the US. It sells high volumes of foods and general merchandise at discounted prices through a membership warehouse. Its product line includes sundries, dry groceries, candies, coolers, freezers, deli, liquor, tobacco, appliances, electronics, health and beauty aids, and hardware.

Costco’s competitive edge stems from regularly adjusting to new trends, aiding its ability to draw in customers and investors. It has successfully capitalized on the increasing trend towards purchasing goods online. The store anticipates its extensive range of reasonably priced items will continue to draw in shoppers, whether they buy online or come to its brick-and-mortar locations.

Costco delivered a 7.1% rise in its monthly net sales, hitting $19.83 billion in August, up from $18.51 billion in the previous year’s August. This impressive growth continues a wider pattern, as the firm has consistently upheld strong fundamentals. Revenues in its fiscal fourth quarter increased 1% year over year to $78.2 billion, while full-year sales increased 5% to $249 billion.

E-commerce remained a powerful force behind Costco’s success, experiencing a 16.1% rise in sales comparable to the previous year. This shows Costco’s ability to withstand competition in the retail world and highlights the company’s ongoing attractiveness to shoppers around the globe.

The company remains in a solid financial position with a free cash flow of $7.4 billion while offering a 0.46% dividend yield. By the end of the second quarter, 71 hedge funds had invested in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST). Fisher Asset Management was the largest shareholder, holding a position valued at $2.51 billion as of June 30.

ClearBridge Investments’ ClearBridge Sustainability Leaders Strategy mentioned the following about Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:

“Consumer staples holdings were also standouts in the quarter, such as Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST), which continues to execute well and delivered better than expected earnings, helped by strong traffic driving better expense leverage. Customers also looked to be shifting toward more discretionary purchases.”