Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel Has $2.41 Million Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 38.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,643 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 2,255 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 1.1% of Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel's holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 29,951 shares of the retailer's stock worth $19,770,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. Consolidated Capital Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Consolidated Capital Management LLC now owns 8,921 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,888,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC now owns 6,519 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,303,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. now owns 18,210 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $12,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summitry LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $206,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the business's 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 owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at $4,785,786.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on COST. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $694.48.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ COST traded up $8.15 on Friday, hitting $787.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,652,658 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,649,685. The company's 50-day moving average is $732.99 and its 200 day moving average is $679.81. The firm has a market cap of $349.12 billion, a PE ratio of 51.48, a PEG ratio of 5.25 and a beta of 0.77. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $476.75 and a 1-year high of $787.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. Costco Wholesale's revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.30 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.35%.

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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