KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC Increases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.6%, acquiring an additional 292 shares, bringing its total holdings to 11,427 shares valued at approximately $11.3 million.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their stakes in Costco, with GAMMA Investing LLC reporting an increase of over 106,000% during the first quarter.
• Wall Street analysts have optimistic projections for Costco, raising target prices and ratings, with an average price target now at $1,056.67, indicating a strong market sentiment towards the stock.

KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,427 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 0.8% of KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $11,312,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,644,711 shares of the retailer's stock worth $40,332,515,000 after acquiring an additional 443,101 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,717,744,000 after buying an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,332,009 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,097,127,000 after buying an additional 18,045 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 5.2% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,907,670 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,695,796,000 after purchasing an additional 191,985 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the first quarter valued at about $3,461,159,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock traded down $1.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $951.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,601,598 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,916,574. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.16 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market capitalization of $421.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 0.97. The company's fifty day moving average is $957.97 and its 200-day moving average is $971.70.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,056.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares of the company's stock, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.