7,621 Shares in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Bought by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired 7,621 shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation in Q1, with a total investment of approximately $7.2 million.
• Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share to be paid on August 15th, reflecting a 0.56% dividend yield.
• Multiple analysts have issued varied ratings and price targets for Costco, with an average price target of $1,037.48 and most analysts recommending a "Moderate Buy".

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,621 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $7,208,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded up $16.15 on Friday, reaching $954.49. 2,078,503 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,210,628. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $984.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $983.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $423.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total value of $3,008,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. The trade was a 40.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Cfra Research raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,037.48.

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.