Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Holdings Lowered by Chelsea Counsel Co.

Key Points

• Chelsea Counsel Co. reduced its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.3% during the first quarter, selling 287 shares and now owning 8,440 shares worth approximately $7,982,000.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, resulting in a 0.5% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 29.50%.
• Costco's stock recently traded at $968.26 with significant fluctuations, having a 12-month range between $867.16 and $1,078.23.

Chelsea Counsel Co. cut its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 8,440 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 287 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 4.3% of Chelsea Counsel Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Chelsea Counsel Co.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $7,982,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after acquiring an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the first quarter valued at approximately $3,461,159,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,644,711 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $40,332,515,000 after acquiring an additional 443,101 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 84.0% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 812,188 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $768,114,000 after acquiring an additional 370,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $280,046,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the business'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 transaction, the director owned 11,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,147 shares of company stock valued at $5,031,130. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST stock traded up $3.58 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $967.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,460,154 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,950,274. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $960.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $975.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.16 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The stock has a market cap of $429.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.84, a PEG ratio of 5.43 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, August 27th. Erste Group Bank downgraded Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,056.67.

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.