SFE Investment Counsel Sells 407 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

SFE Investment Counsel lessened its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 3.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,743 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 407 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 2.0% of SFE Investment Counsel's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. SFE Investment Counsel's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $10,161,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital dropped their price target on 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. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,037.48.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% 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 Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction of $3,008,310.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,705,164.11. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ COST traded up $1.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $935.48. 1,825,525 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,969,335. The business's fifty day moving average price is $992.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $983.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $414.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.06, a P/E/G ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released 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. 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%. Costco Wholesale's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

About Costco Wholesale

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.