Dillon & Associates Inc. Grows Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Key Points

• Dillon & Associates Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 22.5%, owning nearly 10,000 shares valued at over $9 million, making Costco its 23rd largest holding.
• Insider transactions showed executives selling shares of Costco, with EVP Patrick J. Callans selling 3,000 shares for over $3 million, indicating a decrease in their ownership.
• Recent analyst ratings on Costco varied, with some upgrades and downgrades; the stock holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and has a price target of approximately $1,050.

Dillon & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 22.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,940 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 1,826 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.4% of Dillon & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Dillon & Associates Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Peninsula Wealth LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 818 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $749,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Bosun Asset Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $583,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Corps Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the first quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.6% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 126 shares of the retailer's stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 3,437 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,163,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total value of $3,008,310.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director directly owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,472,510. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on 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. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $980.98 on Monday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $837.63 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.23. The firm has a market cap of $435.05 billion, a PE ratio of 55.64, a P/E/G ratio of 6.10 and a beta of 0.96. The business's fifty day moving average is $977.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $985.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion for 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%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.78 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share 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 given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend 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%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding COST? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.