Wade G W & Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Wade G W & Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST – Get Rating) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,645 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,266 shares during the period. Wade G W & Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,229,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cowa LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Destiny Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 132.1% during the 4th quarter. Destiny Wealth Partners LLC now owns 65 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 275.0% during the 4th quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 90 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Piershale Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Caton Frates sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $497.35, for a total transaction of $298,410.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,552. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Caton Frates sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $497.35, for a total value of $298,410.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,148,552. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $488.95, for a total transaction of $733,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,093 shares in the company, valued at $4,934,972.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,168 shares of company stock worth $2,031,341 over the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $14.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $500.96. 1,769,299 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,873,161. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $443.20 and a 12-month high of $564.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 1.06. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $495.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $492.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $222.17 billion, a PE ratio of 35.75, a P/E/G ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 0.79.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 25th. The retailer reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.32 by $0.11. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.66% and a net margin of 2.58%. The business had revenue of $53.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.17 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 14.35 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 19th. Investors of record on Friday, May 5th were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 4th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. UBS Group dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $575.00 to $560.00 in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $545.00 to $535.00 in a report on Thursday, April 6th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $550.00 to $545.00 in a report on Friday. TheStreet upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 23rd. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, February 7th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $510.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $547.72.

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

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Costco Wholesale Corp. engages in the operation of membership warehouses through wholly owned subsidiaries. It operates through the following geographical segments: United States, Canada, and Other International Operations. The company was founded by James D. Sinegal and Jeffrey H. Brotman in 1983 and is headquartered in Issaquah, WA.