Buffington Mohr McNeal Has $26.10 Million Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Buffington Mohr McNeal lowered its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 35,621 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 484 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 4.7% of Buffington Mohr McNeal’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Buffington Mohr McNeal’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $26,097,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in COST. MV Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 247.3% during the 1st quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,167 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,053,000 after acquiring an additional 2,967 shares during the period. Exchange Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,060 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,509,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 3,486 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,554,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 421 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.0% during the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 18,427 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $13,500,000 after acquiring an additional 3,076 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $859.36 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $804.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $742.15. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $524.63 and a twelve month high of $873.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $380.98 billion, a PE ratio of 53.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.78.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. 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 is presently 28.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 2nd. Argus lifted their target price 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. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $875.00 target price (up previously from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Gordon Haskett cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $758.70.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.