Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Buys 3,574 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 8.4% in the first quarter, owning 45,925 shares valued at approximately $43.4 million.
• Costco's recent earnings report showed earnings per share of $4.28, exceeding estimates, along with a revenue of $63.21 billion, which was higher than expected.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, expected to be paid on August 15th, indicating a focus on shareholder returns amidst strong financial performance.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 8.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,925 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 3,574 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $43,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Peninsula Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 818 shares of the retailer's stock worth $749,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the retailer's stock worth $583,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the first quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 980 shares of the retailer's stock worth $898,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 3,437 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,163,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 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 a total of 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,472,510 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $934.57. 659,971 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,205,043. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $992.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $984.23. 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 cap of $414.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.01, a PEG ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 0.97. 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.78 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of a number of research reports. 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 report on Friday, May 30th. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,037.48.

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.