Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Commerce Bank

Key Points

• Commerce Bank reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 1.2%, holding 111,344 shares valued at $105.31 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors made significant changes to their positions in Costco, with GAMMA Investing LLC increasing its stake by an astonishing 106,402.1% during the first quarter.
• Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with an annualized dividend of $5.20, representing a dividend yield of 0.6%.

Commerce Bank cut its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 111,344 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 1,341 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $105,307,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peninsula Wealth LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 818 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the retailer's stock worth $583,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the first quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,463,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 980 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $898,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 3,437 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,163,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of COST stock traded up $12.88 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $952.52. The company had a trading volume of 2,932,630 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,019,283. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $793.00 and a twelve month high of $1,078.23. The company has a market capitalization of $422.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.96. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $983.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $983.82.

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. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. Costco Wholesale's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.78 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,037.48.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. This represents a 40.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.