West Branch Capital LLC Buys 433 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

West Branch Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 14.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,432 shares of the retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 1.1% of West Branch Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. West Branch Capital LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded down $12.50 during trading on Friday, hitting $990.21. 1,782,964 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,067,253. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market cap of $439.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.15, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The firm's fifty day moving average is $1,000.43 and its 200-day moving average is $980.96. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.78 EPS. Costco Wholesale's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total value of $3,008,310.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,705,164.11. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Nine 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,035.32.

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.