Vise Technologies Inc. Purchases 2,251 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Vise Technologies Inc. grew its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 77.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,174 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,251 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,741,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after purchasing an additional 455,043 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after purchasing an additional 149,209 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $5,182,316,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,817,573,000 after acquiring an additional 587,303 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,018.13 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $788.20 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24. The stock's 50 day moving average is $971.00 and its 200-day moving average is $971.25. 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 market capitalization of $451.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.78, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on COST. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,024.03.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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