Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Position Boosted by Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc.

Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 21,929 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 2.0% of Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $20,740,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Western Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.0% during the first quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,975 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $14,164,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares during the period. Nvest Financial LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the first quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,784 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,633,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 70,068 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $66,269,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092 shares during the period. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 11.0% during the first quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC now owns 1,864 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,763,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Terra Nova Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the first quarter. Terra Nova Asset Management LLC now owns 3,408 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,223,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $982.91 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $1,004.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $981.26. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $793.00 and a twelve month high of $1,078.24. 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 cap of $435.90 billion, a PE ratio of 55.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on COST. Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,034.79.

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.