Arlington Financial Advisors LLC Has $9.44 Million Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Arlington Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 5.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,979 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 536 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 1.7% of Arlington Financial Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Arlington Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,048,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,488 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,196,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. SRN Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,823,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Miramar Capital LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer's stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC raised 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 in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted 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. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,035.32.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of COST traded down $1.26 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $1,055.59. 1,990,643 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,052,260. The firm's 50 day moving average is $986.39 and its 200-day moving average is $977.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $468.35 billion, a PE ratio of 61.98, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Co. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.36%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.