Bernard Wealth Management Corp. Purchases Shares of 1,596 Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,596 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,462,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for 0.7% of Bernard Wealth Management Corp.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.3% in 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 last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price target on the stock. Cfra Research raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,024.03.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST traded up $9.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $1,017.79. 1,865,159 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,050,996. The company's 50-day moving average is $975.30 and its 200 day moving average is $973.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $788.20 and a 52 week high of $1,078.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $451.58 billion, a PE ratio of 59.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 30.36%.

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.