Simplicity Wealth LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Simplicity Wealth LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 252.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,617 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,591 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,421,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Capital & Planning LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 28.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 3,756 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,441,000 after acquiring an additional 837 shares during the period. Redmond Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,214,000. May Barnhard Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $485,000. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 3,852 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,529,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,165,000 after acquiring an additional 2,172 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. Morgan Stanley increased 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 research report on Friday, May 30th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,035.32.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded down $12.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $990.21. The stock had a trading volume of 1,782,964 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,064,562. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $998.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $980.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $793.00 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $439.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.78 EPS. Research analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.50%.

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.