Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is Bellecapital International Ltd.'s 4th Largest Position

Bellecapital International Ltd. lessened its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 7.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,450 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 1,941 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 4.4% of Bellecapital International Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Bellecapital International Ltd.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $22,179,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stanich Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $214,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares during the last quarter. RW Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 21.3% during the fourth quarter. RW Investment Management LLC now owns 5,624 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,153,000 after purchasing an additional 989 shares during the last quarter. AMJ Financial Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. AMJ Financial Wealth Management now owns 10,536 shares of the retailer's stock worth $9,654,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marks Group Wealth Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 1,002 shares of the retailer's stock worth $918,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded down $12.50 during trading on Friday, hitting $990.21. 1,782,964 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,067,253. The stock has a market capitalization of $439.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1,000.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $981.10.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. Costco Wholesale's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction of $3,008,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,825,205. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on COST. Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average 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.