Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Position Lifted by Chokshi & Queen Wealth Advisors Inc

Key Points

• Chokshi & Queen Wealth Advisors Inc increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 5.1% in Q2, now holding 11,702 shares worth approximately $11.58 million.
• Several other institutional investors have also positioned themselves in Costco, with a total of 68.48% of the stock owned by hedge funds and institutional investors.
• Costco reported earnings of $5.87 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing expectations and reflecting a year-over-year revenue increase of 8.1%.

Chokshi & Queen Wealth Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 5.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,702 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 563 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 6.6% of Chokshi & Queen Wealth Advisors Inc's portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Chokshi & Queen Wealth Advisors Inc's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $11,584,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 900.0% in the 1st quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 975.0% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 72.0% in the 2nd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Finally, eCIO Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This trade represents a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,160.00 to $1,050.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $907.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,068.15.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $937.50 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $415.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $947.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $971.46. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $867.34 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23. 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 (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, topping the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.15 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio 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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