Shares of Costco Wholesale Corp (NASDAQ: COST) shares continued to fall on Monday following its fiscal third-quarter earnings report on Thursday. DA Davidson labeled the retailer a "Best-of-Breed Bison," highlighting its durable moat and favorable risk-reward profile. Analyst Michael Baker maintained a Neutral rating with a $1,000 price target, noting Costco's best-in-class fundamentals.
Baker added that Costco fits the "Best-of-Breed Bison" due to the following positives:
- Favorable market dynamics
- Dominant market position
- Strong track record of high performance
- Prudent use of capital
- Record of solid returns on equity
The growth of Warehouse clubs has outpaced total retail growth, and the company has taken market share from other warehouse clubs as well as from other retailers, he noted.
"We believe that the warehouse model has one of the deepest moats in retailing, establishing barriers to entry with low prices and distribution efficiency on a relatively small SKU count, all while being backstopped by membership fee income," Baker further wrote.
Shareholder Returns: Costco has consistently generated positive cash flow for over two decades, supporting shareholder returns, the analyst said. "In fact, COST has paid $19.7B to shareholders through dividends over the last 5 years and returned another $3.2B in buybacks," he further noted.
Price Action
Shares of Costco had declined by 1.55% to $939.63 at the time of publication on Monday.