JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd Decreases Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 21.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,470 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,000 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for 1.2% of JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $18,647,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4 %

COST stock opened at $862.66 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $807.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $743.56. The company has a market capitalization of $382.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $524.63 and a 12 month high of $873.96.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on COST. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $750.00 to $775.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $940.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale 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 business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company 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.