Putney Financial Group LLC Invests $3.19 Million in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,483 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $3,191,000. Costco Wholesale comprises 2.2% of Putney Financial Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Collier Financial purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 59.3% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock traded down $2.33 during trading on Thursday, reaching $1,010.82. The company had a trading volume of 814,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,045,010. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $979.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $974.01. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $788.20 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $448.48 billion, a PE ratio of 59.34, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value 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 represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI set a $1,070.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,028.46.

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.