Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 66.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,080 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 2,131 shares during the period. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,021,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted 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 buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale
In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at $10,495,211.65. The trade was a 8.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,647 shares of company stock worth $10,530,961. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.
Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3%
COST stock opened at $1,001.92 on Wednesday. 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 cap of $444.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.83, a PEG ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 1.00. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,003.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $981.25. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.24.
Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.
Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is 29.50%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Nine investment 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, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.
Read Our Latest Report on COST
About Costco Wholesale
(
Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
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