Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is World Equity Group Inc.'s 5th Largest Position

World Equity Group Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 697.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,622 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 8,416 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 2.6% of World Equity Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. World Equity Group Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,097,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on COST. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded up $5.39 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $980.29. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,250,821 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,063,545. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $793.00 and a 1 year high of $1,078.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market cap of $434.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.60, a PEG ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.00. The business's fifty day moving average is $1,002.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $981.03.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% 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 Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,547 shares of company stock valued at $11,361,265 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale 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.