UMB Bank n.a. Cuts Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

UMB Bank n.a. reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 4.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 91,050 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 4,030 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 1.4% of UMB Bank n.a.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. UMB Bank n.a.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $86,113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $1,014.94 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24. The stock has a market cap of $450.31 billion, a PE ratio of 59.60, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a 50-day moving average of $993.68 and a 200 day moving average of $979.66.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.78 EPS. The business's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,035.32.

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.

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