Allen Investment Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Key Points

• Allen Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 178%, acquiring an additional 2,880 shares, bringing its total holdings to 4,498 shares worth approximately $4.25 million.
• Costco recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, which will be paid on August 15th, representing an annualized dividend of $5.20 and a yield of 0.56%.
• In its latest earnings report, Costco reported $4.28 earnings per share, surpassing analysts' estimates, and a revenue of $63.21 billion, marking an 8% year-over-year increase.

Allen Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 178.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,498 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 2,880 shares during the period. Allen Investment Management LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,254,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,165,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 45.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 117,254 shares of the retailer's stock worth $107,436,000 after acquiring an additional 36,384 shares in the last quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 4,813 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,410,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Value Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,501 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,789,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $1.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $935.48. 1,825,525 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,969,335. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $793.00 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The company has a market capitalization of $414.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $992.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $983.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Loop Capital lowered their price target 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, Mizuho initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,037.48.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.