Investors weren’t impressed with Costco’s latest results, but they may soon find reason to be happy anyway. Warehouse Club’s fiscal third-quarter revenue exceeded expectations, with earnings per share in line with LSEG consensus estimates. Still, the stock was down about 3% in early trading Friday. Costco hasn’t announced a special dividend, a one-time payment outside of its regular dividend cycle, but some on Wall Street expect it to happen soon. If that happens, Costco stock could rise. “Given the company’s strong cash position, I would not be surprised to see a special dividend,” Bernstein analyst Jihan Ma said in a note Friday. COST YTD Mountain Costco Year to Date Bank of America expects a payment announcement to be made in the coming months. “Cost’s last special dividend was paid in January 2024, and the company has historically paid special dividends every two to three years,” analyst Christopher Nardone said in a note Thursday. “Given COST’s healthy cash balance, we believe an announcement could occur within the next few quarters (quarters),” he noted, noting that the previous special dividend yield was around 2.4%. He calculated that to achieve a similar yield at the current stock price, the company would need about $24 in dividends per share. The recent history of Costco’s special dividends looks like this: January 2024: $15 per share. December 2020: $10 per share. May 2017: $7 per share. February 2015: $5 per share. December 2012: $7 per share. Meanwhile, Costco shareholders are paid a regular quarterly dividend, and the stock currently yields 0.59%. The stock is up 15% since the beginning of the year.
