LGT Group Foundation Sells 12,991 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Key Points

• LGT Group Foundation reduced its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 75.7% in Q1, holding now 4,179 shares worth approximately $3.95 million.
• GAMMA Investing LLC dramatically increased its ownership by 106,402.1%, accumulating over 8.16 million shares valued at about $7.72 billion.
• Costco has announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with a payout ratio of 29.50% and an annual yield of 0.5%.

LGT Group Foundation reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 75.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,179 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 12,991 shares during the quarter. LGT Group Foundation's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,952,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% in the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Erste Group Bank lowered Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,050.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,326,171.50. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded down $3.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $972.04. 1,625,224 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,212,211. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $867.16 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. The firm has a market cap of $431.08 billion, a PE ratio of 55.14, a PEG ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $973.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $985.83. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. 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, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is 29.50%.

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.