Beech Hill Advisors Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 11.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 755 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $553,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC raised its position in 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 buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $855.51 on Wednesday. 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 fifty-two week low of $521.26 and a fifty-two week high of $873.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $793.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $735.97. The company has a market capitalization of $379.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.01, a PEG ratio of 5.61 and a beta of 0.79.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.43 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 25th. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $860.00 to $890.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $905.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $680.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $777.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $756.85.

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.