WP Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST – Free Report) by 4.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,504 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 72 shares during the period. WP Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,916,118,000 after acquiring an additional 473,702 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,628,694,000. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,802,147,000 after acquiring an additional 285,533 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,794,480 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,844,581,000 after acquiring an additional 85,398 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,657,994 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,754,489,000 after acquiring an additional 77,345 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Costco Wholesale Stock Performance
Shares of COST stock opened at $892.38 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $539.31 and a 12 month high of $918.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $395.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.29, a P/E/G ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $854.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $794.02.
Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.
Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale
In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
COST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $970.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $824.50.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Costco Wholesale
Costco Wholesale 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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