Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Trust Co of the South

Trust Co of the South lowered its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 49.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 578 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 559 shares during the period. Trust Co of the South’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $423,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $875.00 target price (up from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $676.00 price objective (up from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted 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. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $752.96.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.6 %

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $848.31 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $788.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $730.83. The firm has a market capitalization 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. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $519.34 and a one year high of $873.96.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $58.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

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

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.