1,801 Shares in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Bought by Alteri Wealth LLC

Alteri Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,801 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,650,000. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.5% of Alteri Wealth LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,008.30 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $733.35 and a twelve month high of $1,078.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $961.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $958.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $447.37 billion, a PE ratio of 59.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. On average, analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.36%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price on the stock. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,045.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,024.03.

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.

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