Capital Investment Counsel Inc reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 3.3% during the third quarter, selling 2,242 shares to hold 65,491 shares worth $60.6 million as of its latest SEC filing. The retailer now represents 7.4% of the fund’s overall portfolio, making it its third-largest holding. Several other institutions also reshuffled their exposure: Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake by 12.3% to 19,825 shares valued at $18.2 million, Revolve Wealth Partners LLC added 13.1% for a 1,123-share position worth $1.0 million, while Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC, Sivia Capital Partners LLC and Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted their respective positions by 45.0%, 4.5% and 6.3%. Overall, institutional investors and hedge funds now control 68.48% of the company’s shares.

Corporate insiders collectively sold 9,315 shares valued at $8.55 million during the last quarter. Director Susan L. Decker trimmed her holdings by 5.09%, disposing of 458 shares for proceeds of $437,390, leaving her with 8,532 shares. Executive Vice President Teresa A. Jones sold 850 shares—a 16.74% reduction—for total proceeds of $838,321, ending the period with 4,228 shares. Despite these transactions, insiders retain only 0.10% of the total equity, signaling limited management ownership but no significant accumulation by executives.

In its most recent quarter, Costco reported earnings per share of $4.34, surpassing consensus estimates by $0.07, on revenue of $67.31 billion—up 8.3% year-over-year and ahead of the $67.03 billion forecast. The company delivered a return on equity of 29.35% and maintained a net margin of 2.96%. It declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, translating to an annualized payout of $5.20 and a dividend payout ratio of 27.85%. On the analyst front, among thirty-four firms covering the stock, twenty-one maintain buy ratings, twelve hold and one recommends sell, resulting in a consensus view of Moderate Buy.