Greenleaf Trust Reduces Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• Greenleaf Trust reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 12.8% during Q2, now holding 15,982 shares worth approximately $15.8 million.
• Costco reported Q3 earnings of $5.87 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenues of $86.16 billion, marking an 8.1% year-over-year increase.
• Multiple institutional investors adjusted their positions in Costco, with hedge funds collectively owning 68.48% of the company's stock as of the latest filings.

Greenleaf Trust decreased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 12.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,982 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 2,337 shares during the quarter. Greenleaf Trust's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $15,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer's stock worth $18,165,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,029,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% during the first quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 5,089 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,813,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 18.4% during the first quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 360 shares of the retailer's stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 23.9% during the first quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 10,164 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $9,613,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $916.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.16 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $406.61 billion, a PE ratio of 50.35, a P/E/G ratio of 5.15 and a beta of 0.97. The business's 50 day moving average price is $955.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $971.72.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The company had revenue of $86.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.15 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 28.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,160.00 to $1,050.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,042.00 to $1,033.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Argus raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,130.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday. Finally, Roth Capital set a $907.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,072.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at $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. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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