Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. Invests $5.34 Million in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,832 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $5,344,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for 2.5% of Hall Capital Management Co. Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stanich Group LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $214,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares during the period. Brentview Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $4,522,000. Manuka Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $258,000. Finally, Flavin Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $1,494,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on COST. Barclays upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,045.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,024.03.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST traded down $4.65 on Wednesday, hitting $1,013.14. 1,666,749 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,049,469. The company has a 50 day moving average of $977.74 and a 200-day moving average of $973.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $449.51 billion, a PE ratio of 59.49, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $788.20 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. 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 yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.36%.

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.