AlTi Global Inc. Trims Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• AlTi Global Inc. reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in Q1, now holding 2,063 shares valued at approximately $1.95 million.
• Recent insider trades showed Director Susan L. Decker and EVP Patrick J. Callans selling shares, reducing their ownership by 4.53% and 4.87% respectively.
• Analysts remain mostly positive, with 17 ratings as a "Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00 for Costco shares.

AlTi Global Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 42.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,063 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 1,515 shares during the quarter. AlTi Global Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,953,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% in the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction of $3,008,310.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at $58,705,164.11. This represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,629,419.04. This represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 8,147 shares of company stock valued at $8,039,440. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of COST traded up $7.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $963.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,926,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,013,209. The stock has a market cap of $427.28 billion, a PE ratio of 54.65, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $867.16 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23. The company's fifty day moving average price is $962.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $977.09.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,050.00.

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.