Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Has $286.34 Million Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 390,841 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 9,578 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. owned about 0.09% of Costco Wholesale worth $286,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,628,694,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 61,693.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,105,124 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,049,630,000 after acquiring an additional 3,100,099 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $510,353,000. C WorldWide Group Holding A S bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $390,630,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3,647.1% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 567,641 shares of the retailer's stock worth $374,688,000 after purchasing an additional 552,492 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ COST traded down $3.43 on Tuesday, reaching $722.90. The company had a trading volume of 1,734,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,045,451. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company's fifty day moving average is $730.40 and its 200 day moving average is $669.72. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $476.75 and a 52-week high of $787.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $320.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The firm's revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.30 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $800.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $694.48.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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