Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) Stake Boosted by Smith Group Asset Management LLC

Smith Group Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 3.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 50,471 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 1,894 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 3.6% of Smith Group Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Smith Group Asset Management LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $47,734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in COST. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $5,182,316,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $95,452,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,817,573,000 after buying an additional 587,303 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after acquiring an additional 455,043 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, 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 value of $3,924,280.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded up $2.91 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $985.27. The stock had a trading volume of 635,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,069,550. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,004.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $981.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $436.95 billion, a PE ratio of 55.91, a P/E/G ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. 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%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on COST. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given 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 $1,034.79.

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.