Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Acquires Shares of 305,637 Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 305,637 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $280,046,000. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 0.6% of Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned about 0.07% of Costco Wholesale as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COST. Grassi Investment Management grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Grassi Investment Management now owns 5,155 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,723,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Capital & Planning LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 837 shares during the last quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $1,214,000. May Barnhard Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $485,000. Finally, Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded down $3.48 during trading on Thursday, reaching $1,009.66. 947,441 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,045,493. The firm has a market capitalization of $447.97 billion, a PE ratio of 59.31, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $979.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $974.01. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $788.20 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24. 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 (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,028.46.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,242,687. The trade was a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale 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.