Highland Capital Management LLC Acquires 2,306 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,047 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 2,306 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up 2.3% of Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $37,875,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Matisse Capital increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Matisse Capital now owns 1,806 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,708,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 58.5% during the 1st quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 20,884 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $19,751,000 after buying an additional 7,705 shares in the last quarter. 3Chopt Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,370,000. Hartmann Taylor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at about $632,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 150,226 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $139,659,000 after buying an additional 21,249 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Nine 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 an average price target of $1,034.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $985.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $436.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.88, a P/E/G ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 1.00. The business's 50 day moving average is $1,003.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $981.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. Costco Wholesale's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.78 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

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.

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