Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC Trims Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC reduced its position in Costco Wholesale by 5.9%, selling 5,163 shares, and now holds 82,873 shares valued at approximately $78.38 million.
• Cadence between institutional investors is notable, with Brighton Jones LLC increasing its stake by 12.3% and Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosting its holdings by 45.0% in the fourth quarter.
• Analyst opinions on Costco's stock are mixed, with price targets ranging from $1,100 to $1,225 while maintaining a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC lowered its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 5.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 82,873 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 5,163 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 1.9% of Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Atalanta Sosnoff Capital LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $78,380,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total value of $3,008,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,147 shares of company stock valued at $8,039,440. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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 report on Thursday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, August 27th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ COST traded up $7.58 on Friday, hitting $963.48. 1,926,561 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,013,209. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $962.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $977.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $427.28 billion, a PE ratio of 54.65, a P/E/G ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 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.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

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.