Confluence Wealth Services Inc. Purchases 1,417 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 30.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,069 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 1,417 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $5,922,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. May Barnhard Investments LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $485,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,165,000 after acquiring an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 33.3% during the 4th quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 188 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 45.0% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 117,254 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $107,436,000 after buying an additional 36,384 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST traded up $4.80 during trading on Monday, hitting $989.94. 2,125,819 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,073,389. The stock's fifty day moving average is $1,003.90 and its 200 day moving average is $981.05. The firm has a market cap of $439.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $793.00 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is an increase 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 payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,326,171.50. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,496,950. 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.