GS Investments Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Key Points

• GS Investments Inc. has reduced its position in Costco Wholesale by 9.4%, now holding 4,652 shares valued at approximately $4.4 million.
• Costco recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with an annual yield of 0.56%, scheduled for distribution on August 15th.
• Following a recent earnings report, Costco beat expectations with $4.28 EPS and revenue of $63.21 billion, reflecting an 8% year-over-year increase.

GS Investments Inc. lowered its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,652 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 480 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 2.1% of GS Investments Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. GS Investments Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.2% during the first quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 1,439 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,339,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. 360 Financial Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 16.7% in the first quarter. 360 Financial Inc. now owns 2,439 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,307,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.3% in the first quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,040,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 48,291 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $45,688,000 after purchasing an additional 2,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 53.8% in the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 6,846 shares of the retailer's stock worth $6,475,000 after buying an additional 2,394 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of 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. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,037.48.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded down $7.06 on Wednesday, reaching $927.51. 1,682,635 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,941,458. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $793.00 and a twelve month high of $1,078.23. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $986.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $983.48. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $411.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.61, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.97.

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

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is 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.