Cooper Capital Advisors LLC Sells 425 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Cooper Capital Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 49.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 440 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 425 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 0.4% of Cooper Capital Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Cooper Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Aspect Partners LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $970.33. The stock had a trading volume of 1,939,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,063,204. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $430.32 billion, a PE ratio of 55.04, a P/E/G ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,003.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $982.24.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director directly owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on COST. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price 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. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,037.48.

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.