Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Acquired by Cim LLC

Key Points

• Cim LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 9.7%, holding 24,622 shares valued at approximately $23.29 million.
• Costco recently declared a $1.30 quarterly dividend, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.5%, with a dividend payout ratio of 29.50%.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings for Costco; while some raise price targets up to $1,160, others have downgraded their ratings to "hold."

Cim LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 9.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,622 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,174 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up 3.5% of Cim LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Cim LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $23,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at $3,461,159,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,644,711 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $40,332,515,000 after purchasing an additional 443,101 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 84.0% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 812,188 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $768,114,000 after purchasing an additional 370,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $280,046,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.8%

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $964.32 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $960.77 and its 200-day moving average is $975.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.16 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The company has a market cap of $427.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.70, a PEG ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This trade represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,147 shares of company stock worth $5,031,130. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,056.67.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.