FCG Investment Co Decreases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• FCG Investment Co reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale by 8.9%, now holding 3,277 shares worth approximately $3.24 million.
• Costco reported earnings of $5.87 per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst expectations and achieving an 8.1% revenue growth year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with a current yield of 0.6% and a payout ratio of 29.50%.

FCG Investment Co decreased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 8.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,277 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 320 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 1.7% of FCG Investment Co's portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. FCG Investment Co's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,244,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 172.0% during the second quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 68 shares of the retailer's stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Embree Financial Group grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the second quarter. Embree Financial Group now owns 1,097 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. EdgeRock Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 39.8% in the second quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC now owns 987 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $976,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the period. Patron Partners LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.7% during the second quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 6,107 shares of the retailer's stock worth $6,045,000 after buying an additional 436 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Randolph Co Inc raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the second quarter. Randolph Co Inc now owns 39,667 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $39,268,000 after purchasing an additional 286 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $943.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $956.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $970.87. The firm has a market cap of $418.34 billion, a PE ratio of 53.51, a P/E/G ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $867.16 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.15 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped 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. Erste Group Bank lowered Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,061.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total value of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,629,419.04. This represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. The trade was a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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