Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Holdings Boosted by Bleakley Financial Group LLC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 4.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,390 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 449 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $10,772,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Clear Investment Research LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value 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 trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% 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 quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on 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. Wall Street Zen raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,037.48.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock traded up $10.58 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $980.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,677,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,223,064. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. 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 market capitalization of $435.01 billion, a PE ratio of 55.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.97. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $1,003.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $982.24.

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, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.78 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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