Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. Trims Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• Laffer Tengler Investments trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 1st quarter, reducing its total shares to 4,811, valued at $4,550,000.
• Costco recently reported a quarterly EPS of $4.28, exceeding estimates and showing an 8.0% revenue increase year-over-year.
• Insider transactions included EVP Pierre Riel selling 2,000 shares and Director Susan L. Decker selling 547 shares, both indicating a decrease in their ownership interests.

Laffer Tengler Investments Inc. trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 22.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,811 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 1,369 shares during the period. Laffer Tengler Investments Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% 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 business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of COST opened at $969.68 on Friday. 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 1 year low of $867.16 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $970.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $985.89. The firm has a market cap of $430.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.18 and a beta of 0.96.

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

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is 29.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. 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 research note on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective 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. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00.

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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