Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Bought by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.8%, acquiring 35,113 additional shares, bringing its total holdings to 1,997,863 shares, valued at approximately $1.89 billion.
• Costco's quarterly earnings exceeded analysts' expectations with reported earnings per share of $4.28 and revenue of $63.21 billion, marking an 8% increase compared to the previous year.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30, scheduled for payment on August 15th, reflecting a dividend yield of 0.5%.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,997,863 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 35,113 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises about 0.5% of Dimensional Fund Advisors LP's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.45% of Costco Wholesale worth $1,889,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.4% in the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,436,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. F&V Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at $236,000. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at $3,095,000. Rossmore Private Capital raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the first quarter. Rossmore Private Capital now owns 6,687 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $6,325,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Curat Global LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth about $241,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST traded up $7.31 during trading on Monday, reaching $979.35. 2,077,362 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,211,416. The business's 50 day moving average price is $972.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $986.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $434.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.55, a P/E/G ratio of 6.04 and a beta of 0.96. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.16 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. Costco Wholesale's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 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 $5,629,419.04. The trade was a 40.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 value of $3,008,310.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,705,164.11. This represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.