AlphaQuest LLC Takes $896,000 Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC has acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale Corporation, purchasing 947 shares valued at approximately $896,000 during the first quarter.
• Insider sales have been notable, with EVP Teresa A. Jones selling 600 shares for about $595,230, which is a 20.26% decrease in her ownership.
• Costco's stock has a current market cap of $425.09 billion, with a consensus price target of $1,050.00 from analysts, indicating a strong outlook for the company.

AlphaQuest LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 947 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $896,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. The trade was a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,147 shares of company stock valued at $10,067,740. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price objective on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $958.54 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $425.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.37, a P/E/G ratio of 5.96 and a beta of 0.96. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $969.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $984.60. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $867.16 and a twelve month high of $1,078.23.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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%.

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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