Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Position Increased by Lodestone Wealth Management LLC

Lodestone Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,638 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 82 shares during the quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,392,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,763 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,164,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 21,514 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $14,201,000 after purchasing an additional 2,909 shares during the last quarter. Zhang Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 1,010 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.9% during the first quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,867 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,346,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 27,902 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,418,000 after buying an additional 1,627 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $864.49. The company had a trading volume of 606,502 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,986,239. The firm has a market capitalization of $383.25 billion, a PE ratio of 53.40, a PEG ratio of 5.49 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $846.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $779.49. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $530.56 and a one year high of $896.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $58.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.43 EPS. Analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $848.53, for a total transaction of $1,272,795.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,992 shares in the company, valued at $9,327,041.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,350 shares of company stock worth $2,837,131. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $875.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $920.00 to $915.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $824.50.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.