Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Position Boosted by Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC

Key Points

• Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.5%, owning 4,264 shares valued at approximately $4.22 million.
• Costco reported $5.87 EPS for the latest quarter, surpassing expectations, with revenue of $86.16 billion, an increase of 8.1% year-over-year.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Costco, with most rating it as a "Moderate Buy", and a consensus price target of $1,067.19.

Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,264 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,222,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.4% in the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,436,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. F&V Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,095,000. Rossmore Private Capital increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the first quarter. Rossmore Private Capital now owns 6,687 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $6,325,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $241,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on COST. Argus raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Roth Capital set a $907.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,067.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at $8,912,100. This trade represents a 25.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,981 shares of company stock worth $7,588,685 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.1%

COST stock opened at $916.77 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.34 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $953.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $971.03. The firm has a market cap of $406.57 billion, a PE ratio of 50.34, a PEG ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The business had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.15 EPS. Costco Wholesale's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.56%.

About Costco Wholesale

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.

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