Corundum Group Inc. Sells 629 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Corundum Group Inc. trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 31.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,365 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 629 shares during the quarter. Corundum Group Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,291,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $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 lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of COST stock traded up $2.23 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $985.14. 2,128,085 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,073,406. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,004.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $981.26. The firm has a market cap of $436.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.88, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 1.00. 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 fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. 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. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,034.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was 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 now directly owns 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was 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 directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have 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.