Fidelis Capital Partners LLC Reduces Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lessened its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 52.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,942 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 8,917 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.8% of Fidelis Capital Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $7,760,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COST. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 818 shares of the retailer's stock worth $749,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Bosun Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 10 shares during the period. NFP Retirement Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 980 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $898,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC raised its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The shares were 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 directly owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,496,950. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Wall Street Zen raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Costco Wholesale stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $970.33. The company had a trading volume of 1,939,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,068,105. The firm has a market cap of $430.32 billion, a PE ratio of 55.04, a PEG ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $793.00 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1,004.53 and a 200 day moving average of $981.82.

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, 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 net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.78 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.50%.

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.