Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC Increases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,763 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,144,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in COST. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Steph & Co. increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $694.48.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of COST stock traded up $13.50 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $776.91. 1,001,860 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,018,483. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $731.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $675.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $476.75 and a 52-week high of $787.08. The stock has a market cap of $344.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.63, a P/E/G ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $1.16 dividend. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.35%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,395 shares in the company, valued at $8,967,534.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,967,534.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden. The company offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.