Viewpoint Investment Partners Corp Takes Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Viewpoint Investment Partners Corp acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,739 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,645,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.9% of Viewpoint Investment Partners Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the business'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 now owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,825,205 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,035.32.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded down $12.50 on Friday, hitting $990.21. The company had a trading volume of 1,782,964 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,067,253. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $793.00 and a 1 year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $439.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $1,000.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $980.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.78 EPS. Costco Wholesale's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $1.30 dividend. This is an increase 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

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.