Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Purchased by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• iA Global Asset Management Inc. has increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 28.9%, now owning 62,180 shares valued at approximately $58.8 million.
• Costco's most recent earnings report showed an EPS of $4.28, surpassing the consensus estimate, with revenues for the quarter reaching $63.21 billion, up 8% year-over-year.
• Costco has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with the annualized payout expected to be $5.20 and a yield of 0.5%.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 28.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,180 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 13,934 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.0% of iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $58,809,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $95,452,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,817,573,000 after purchasing an additional 587,303 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 79.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 775,541 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $710,624,000 after acquiring an additional 343,390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $280,046,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price target on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,037.48.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of COST opened at $955.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $423.68 billion, a PE ratio of 54.19, a P/E/G ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 0.96. The firm's 50 day moving average is $982.28 and its 200-day moving average is $984.78. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. 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 (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.78 EPS. Costco Wholesale's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,472,510. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.

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