Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Purchased by PFG Advisors

PFG Advisors lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 19.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,547 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 0.9% of PFG Advisors' investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. PFG Advisors' holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $15,650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 20.4% in the first quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.5%

COST traded down $5.04 on Thursday, hitting $936.15. The company had a trading volume of 1,202,460 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,212,418. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $995.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $983.27. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $415.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.13, a P/E/G ratio of 5.85 and a beta of 0.97.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is 29.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,210 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total value of $3,899,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on COST. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Mizuho initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,037.48.

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.