Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Sold by Wendell David Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Wendell David Associates Inc. reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale by 6.0%, now owning 16,882 shares valued at approximately $16.7 million.
• A recent report indicated that Costco's quarterly revenue increased by 8.1% year-over-year, with earnings per share at $5.87, surpassing expectations.
• Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, which will be paid on November 14th, reflecting a yield of 0.6% and a payout ratio of 28.56%.

Wendell David Associates Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 6.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,882 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 1,081 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 1.7% of Wendell David Associates Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Wendell David Associates Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $16,712,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.7% during the second quarter. Wealthstream Advisors Inc. now owns 1,019 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,009,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth about $46,336,000. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 31.8% during the second quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,976 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,947,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the second quarter. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 2,285 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,262,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Bank lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.2% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 5,846 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,787,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on COST. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,130.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 26th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,225.00 to $1,130.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,068.15.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company's stock, valued at $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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $936.33 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market cap of $414.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.42, a P/E/G ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $867.34 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.23. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $949.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $971.53.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 28.56%.

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.

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