Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd.’s 8th Largest Position

Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd. trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,363 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 266 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 2.6% of Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,659,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Oak Asset Management LLC now owns 4,396 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,737,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the second quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,518,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.3% during the first quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 995 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $729,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 790 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $671,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Finally, LifePro Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 358 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 price objective (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $824.50.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST opened at $885.98 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $392.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.80. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $540.18 and a 52-week high of $918.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $856.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $798.62.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

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.