GAMMA Investing LLC Has $7.72 Billion Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 106,402.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 8,152,528 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 1.4% of GAMMA Investing LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. GAMMA Investing LLC owned approximately 1.84% of Costco Wholesale worth $7,717,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.1% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 5,312 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $5,024,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Eastover Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Eastover Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,421,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Bath Savings Trust Co grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% during the first quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 21,847 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $20,662,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth approximately $95,000. Finally, Sage Capital Advisors llc lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the first quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 9,738 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $9,210,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 4.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded up $40.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $1,048.78. The company had a trading volume of 5,400,884 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,061,175. The stock has a market capitalization of $465.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.58, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $983.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $975.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $788.20 and a one year high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The business's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.78 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. The trade was a 8.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Cfra Research raised Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,035.32.

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.