Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 388 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 9.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,430 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 388 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.4% of Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 354.3% in the first quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 159 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $151,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $635,000. Courier Capital LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.2% in the first quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 8,462 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,004,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the first quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 11,480 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $10,858,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 6.8% in the first quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC now owns 489 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total value of $1,034,011.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value 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. The trade was a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST traded down $10.49 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $996.78. The company had a trading volume of 2,454,396 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,063,183. The company has a market capitalization of $442.05 billion, a PE ratio of 58.53, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $996.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $980.41. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $793.00 and a twelve month 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.78 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.30 dividend. This is a positive change 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 dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Barclays raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,035.32.

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.