Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 35.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,357 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 353 shares during the period. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,284,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COST. Friedenthal Financial increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 14.7% during the first quarter. Friedenthal Financial now owns 327 shares of the retailer's stock worth $310,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 8.1% during the first quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 898 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $848,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Grandview Asset Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the first quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC now owns 2,867 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,711,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,131 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,015,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kiley Juergens Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Kiley Juergens Wealth Management LLC now owns 33,693 shares of the retailer's stock worth $31,867,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 11,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,825,205. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock traded up $2.72 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $977.62. 1,326,374 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,062,621. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24. The company has a market capitalization of $433.55 billion, a PE ratio of 55.48, a PEG ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 1.00. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $1,002.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $981.11. 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 posted 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. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,034.79.

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.