Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Purchased by Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 131.5% during Q1, now owning 1,285 shares valued at approximately $1.2 million, making Costco its 20th largest position.
• Insider transactions include EVP Yoram Rubanenko selling 4,000 shares for about $3.9 million, leading to a 40.92% decrease in his ownership.
• Costco declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with a current dividend yield of 0.56% and an anticipated 18.03 EPS for the year.

Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 131.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,285 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 730 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 0.9% of Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Purkiss Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,216,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Peninsula Wealth LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 818 shares of the retailer's stock worth $749,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Bosun Asset Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $583,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Corps Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. NFP Retirement Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 980 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $898,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 3,437 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,163,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST traded up $14.96 on Thursday, hitting $942.47. The company had a trading volume of 1,439,963 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,204,613. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23. The company has a market capitalization of $417.97 billion, a PE ratio of 53.46, a PEG ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.97. The company's fifty day moving average price is $986.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $983.48. 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 (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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is 29.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on COST shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Truist Financial lifted 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. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted 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. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered 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 research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,037.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 40.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.