Bank of New York Mellon Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lowered its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,170,799 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 162,034 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 0.8% of Bank of New York Mellon Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.94% of Costco Wholesale worth $3,944,658,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the first 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 last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on COST. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST traded down $2.80 on Monday, reaching $984.22. 610,263 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,212,272. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,005.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $981.38. The stock has a market cap of $436.48 billion, a PE ratio of 55.81, a P/E/G ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.