Denver PWM LLC Buys 2,067 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Key Points

• Denver PWM LLC significantly increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 206,700.0% in the first quarter, now owning 2,068 shares valued at approximately $1,956,000.
• Analysts have shown a positive outlook for Costco, with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,037.48.
• Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, equating to an annualized dividend of $5.20 and a yield of 0.56%.

Denver PWM LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 206,700.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,068 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 2,067 shares during the quarter. Denver PWM LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,956,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.5% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 47,148 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $44,592,000 after purchasing an additional 4,846 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 177,910 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $168,264,000 after purchasing an additional 16,347 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 8.4% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 45,925 shares of the retailer's stock worth $43,435,000 after acquiring an additional 3,574 shares during the period. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.9% in the first quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,898 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,795,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Tufton Capital Management lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.3% in the first quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 2,663 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,519,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Mizuho started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,037.48.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded up $1.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $935.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,825,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,969,335. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $992.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $983.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $414.87 billion, a PE ratio of 53.06, 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 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 business had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend 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%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was 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 owned 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.