KFA Private Wealth Group LLC Cuts Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

KFA Private Wealth Group LLC cut its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 21.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 383 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 106 shares during the period. KFA Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $325,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,916,118,000 after purchasing an additional 473,702 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,628,694,000. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,802,147,000 after purchasing an additional 285,533 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,790,935 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,842,241,000 after purchasing an additional 81,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,278,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $844,126,000 after buying an additional 316,426 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $894.29 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $540.23 and a 52-week high of $918.93. The stock has a market cap of $396.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.41, a PEG ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a fifty day moving average of $859.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $802.98. 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 Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Redburn Atlantic cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $860.00 to $890.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Loop Capital raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $970.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $844.52.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 transaction of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, 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 sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Costco Wholesale

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.