von Borstel & Associates Inc. Invests $706,000 in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 747 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $706,000. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.2% of von Borstel & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake 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 buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer's stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,496,950. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on COST. Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Loop Capital cut their target price 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4%

NASDAQ COST opened at $986.27 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $437.39 billion, a PE ratio of 55.94, a P/E/G ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $1,005.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $981.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. Costco Wholesale's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.78 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio 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.

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