Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp decreased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 3.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,170,799 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 162,034 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 0.8% of Bank of New York Mellon Corp's holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.94% of Costco Wholesale worth $3,944,658,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 50.0% during the first quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 21,232 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $20,081,000 after buying an additional 7,081 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 42.7% during the 1st quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 448 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. von Borstel & Associates Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter valued at $706,000. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.4% in the first quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 312,824 shares of the retailer's stock worth $295,862,000 after purchasing an additional 4,285 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 21.7% during the first quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,118 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,949,000 after purchasing an additional 556 shares during 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 $5.16 on Monday, hitting $992.18. 1,831,328 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,073,144. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $1,005.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $981.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $440.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1-year low of $793.00 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on COST. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of 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. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,034.79.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were 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 owned 8,210 shares in the company, valued at $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.