Fairscale Capital LLC Takes Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 173 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $147,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Oak Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Oak Asset Management LLC now owns 4,396 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,737,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the second quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,518,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.3% in the first quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 995 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $729,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 790 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $671,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LifePro Asset Management lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 358 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $304,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.7 %

COST stock opened at $906.98 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $540.23 and a 52 week high of $923.83. The company has a market capitalization of $402.10 billion, a PE ratio of 56.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $864.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $811.25. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Argus upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Gordon Haskett raised Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $844.52.

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.