719 Shares in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Bought by ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC

ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 719 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $659,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital reduced their target price 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, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,024.03.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,008.50 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $788.20 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24. The company has a market capitalization of $447.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.22, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The business's fifty day moving average price is $973.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $972.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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