Mechanics Bank Trust Department Sells 904 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department cut its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,691 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 904 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up 2.4% of Mechanics Bank Trust Department's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Mechanics Bank Trust Department's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $17,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,717,744,000 after acquiring an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,182,316,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 74,796.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,521,893 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,394,465,000 after acquiring an additional 1,519,861 shares in the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $95,452,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 100,422.3% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 796,137 shares of the retailer's stock worth $729,476,000 after acquiring an additional 795,345 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06% 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 worth $9,140,195 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.6%

Costco Wholesale stock traded up $16.67 during trading on Monday, reaching $1,056.85. The company had a trading volume of 2,146,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,052,279. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $983.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $975.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $468.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.06, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. Costco Wholesale's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm 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. 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 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 30.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on COST. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.