Uptick Partners LLC Raises Stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• Uptick Partners LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 302.8%, owning 1,152 shares valued at approximately $1.14 million.
• Costco's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $5.87, exceeding analysts' expectations, with quarterly revenue reaching $86.16 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, reflecting a yield of 0.5%, to be paid on November 14th to investors of record by October 31st.

Uptick Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 302.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,152 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 866 shares during the quarter. Uptick Partners LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of COST. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth about $3,461,159,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 418,980.3% during the 2nd quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 2,359,422 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,335,686,000 after purchasing an additional 2,358,859 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,644,711 shares of the retailer's stock worth $40,332,515,000 after purchasing an additional 443,101 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 84.0% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 812,188 shares of the retailer's stock worth $768,114,000 after purchasing an additional 370,806 shares during the period. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2,369.5% during the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 323,288 shares of the retailer's stock worth $320,036,000 after purchasing an additional 310,197 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of several recent research reports. Erste Group Bank lowered Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Argus boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "buy" rating and a $1,115.00 price target on the stock. Roth Capital set a $907.00 price target on Costco Wholesale and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets reduced their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,068.04.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST opened at $954.99 on Thursday. The business's 50 day moving average is $951.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $971.75. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $867.34 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The firm has a market cap of $423.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.44, a PEG ratio of 5.74 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The company had revenue of $86.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.15 EPS. Costco Wholesale's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.56%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

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.

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