Comerica Bank Lowers Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Comerica Bank trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 141,024 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,687 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 0.5% of Comerica Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $119,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 554 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $471,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,650,562 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,102,941,000 after purchasing an additional 88,550 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 312,946 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $266,001,000 after purchasing an additional 6,750 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2,504.5% during the 2nd quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 31,566 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,831,000 after purchasing an additional 30,354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 31.6% during the 2nd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 25,429 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $21,614,000 after purchasing an additional 6,102 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price target for the company. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $881.19.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $885.62 on Friday. 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 $540.23 and a 12 month high of $923.83. The company has a market cap of $392.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.87, a P/E/G ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50-day moving average of $870.67 and a 200-day moving average of $816.15.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The business had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.86 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

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.