Hoey Investments Inc. Sells 355 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Hoey Investments Inc. decreased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 47.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 398 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 355 shares during the period. Hoey Investments Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total value of $3,008,310.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST traded down $12.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $990.21. 1,782,964 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,064,566. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $1,000.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $980.83. The firm has a market cap of $439.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week 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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The business 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on COST shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,035.32.

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.