455 Shares in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Purchased by Brucke Financial Inc.

Brucke Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 455 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $446,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,182,316,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 74,796.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,521,893 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,394,465,000 after purchasing an additional 1,519,861 shares in the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $95,452,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 100,422.3% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 796,137 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $729,476,000 after acquiring an additional 795,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the fourth 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.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST traded up $9.29 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $1,017.79. The stock had a trading volume of 1,865,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,050,996. The business has a 50-day moving average of $975.30 and a 200-day moving average of $973.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $788.20 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $451.58 billion, a PE ratio of 59.76, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.36%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,445,926.72. The trade was a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on COST. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,024.03.

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.