Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Bought by GAMMA Investing LLC

Key Points

• GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the second quarter, now holding 9,718 shares valued at approximately $9.62 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Ridgewood Investments LLC and Masso Torrence Wealth Management Inc., have also made significant purchases in Costco shares, indicating strong institutional interest.
• Costco announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $5.20 and a yield of 0.5% as of the most recent announcement.

GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 12.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,718 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 1,090 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.6% of GAMMA Investing LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,620,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,461,159,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 418,980.3% in the second quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 2,359,422 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,335,686,000 after purchasing an additional 2,358,859 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,644,711 shares of the retailer's stock worth $40,332,515,000 after acquiring an additional 443,101 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 84.0% in the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 812,188 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $768,114,000 after purchasing an additional 370,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $280,046,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.8%

Costco Wholesale stock traded down $7.90 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $943.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,781,931 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,990,076. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $957.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $971.17. 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 52-week low of $867.16 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $418.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.50, a PEG ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were 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 approximately $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Truist Financial raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,056.67.

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.