Middleton & Co. Inc. MA Sells 1,483 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA lessened its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 29,013 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,483 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 2.9% of Middleton & Co. Inc. MA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $24,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strong Tower Advisory Services grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,867 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,346,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 52.1% in the second quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 7,645 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,499,000 after buying an additional 2,620 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 22.8% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,003,000 after buying an additional 656 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 30.8% during the second quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,596 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,757,000 after acquiring an additional 1,319 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aspiriant LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,327 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $780.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 6th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 target price (up from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $955.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $844.52.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $892.52 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $862.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $809.24. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $540.23 and a 12-month high of $923.83. 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 stock has a market cap of $395.68 billion, a PE ratio of 55.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.