Vanguard Group Inc. Has $42.92 Billion Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• Vanguard increased its stake in Costco by 1.7% in Q2 to 43,356,271 shares (an ownership stake of ~9.78%), a position valued at $42.92 billion and ranking as Vanguard's 17th-largest holding (about 0.7% of its portfolio).
• Costco recently reported a quarterly EPS beat ($5.87 vs. $5.81) and revenue of $86.16 billion (up 8.1% YoY); the company has a market cap of $404.4 billion, a PE of 50.11, and a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $1,063.88.
• Costco pays a quarterly dividend of $1.30 (annualized $5.20, yield 0.6%, payout ratio 28.6%), while insiders have sold 10,320 shares (~$9.6M) over the past 90 days and currently own about 0.18% of the stock.

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 43,356,271 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 711,560 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.7% of Vanguard Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 9.78% of Costco Wholesale worth $42,920,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bulwark Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth about $25,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 900.0% during the 1st quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 975.0% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 72.0% in the 2nd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $912.59 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $404.44 billion, a PE ratio of 50.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $871.71 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The business's 50 day moving average price is $933.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $965.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.03.

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

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.56%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $930.13, for a total value of $2,232,312.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,860,260. This represents a 54.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm'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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. This trade represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,320 shares of company stock worth $9,605,487. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of several recent research reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $1,000.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 26th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,042.00 to $1,033.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $907.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,063.88.

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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