Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Position Reduced by Boston Trust Walden Corp

Boston Trust Walden Corp reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 11.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 131,659 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 17,419 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.9% of Boston Trust Walden Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Boston Trust Walden Corp's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $124,520,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,182,316,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 74,796.3% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,521,893 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,394,465,000 after acquiring an additional 1,519,861 shares during the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $95,452,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,817,573,000 after acquiring an additional 587,303 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on COST. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ COST traded up $2.72 on Friday, reaching $977.62. The company had a trading volume of 1,326,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,062,621. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $793.00 and a 1 year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1,002.60 and a 200-day moving average of $981.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $433.55 billion, a PE ratio of 55.48, a P/E/G ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted 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. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at $10,495,211.65. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.