Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Stock Holdings Boosted by Lee Danner & Bass Inc.

Key Points

• Lee Danner & Bass Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 19.2% in the 2nd quarter, holding shares worth approximately $2.36 million.
• Costco's quarterly earnings beat estimates, reporting $5.87 EPS and revenue of $86.16 billion, marking an 8.1% increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with the ex-dividend date set for October 31 and a dividend yield of 0.6%.

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 19.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,384 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the period. Lee Danner & Bass Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,360,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 443,101 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 18,045 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 5.2% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,907,670 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,695,796,000 after purchasing an additional 191,985 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter worth about $3,461,159,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.9% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,357,630 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,175,579,000 after purchasing an additional 125,441 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,130.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,137.00 to $1,140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report 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. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,068.15.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value 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 trade represents a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $938.50 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $415.92 billion, a PE ratio of 51.55, a PEG ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 0.98. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $946.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $971.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.03. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $867.34 and a twelve month high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $5.15 earnings per share. As a group, research 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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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