Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Bought by Park Avenue Securities LLC

Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,653 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 352 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $14,398,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.6 %

COST stock opened at $848.31 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $519.34 and a 1-year high of $873.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The business’s 50 day moving average is $788.13 and its 200-day moving average is $730.83. The firm has a market cap of $376.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.56, a P/E/G ratio of 5.70 and a beta of 0.79.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The business’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of several recent research reports. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $680.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $777.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Loop Capital boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $752.96.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.