Stewardship Advisors LLC Invests $473,000 in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Stewardship Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 534 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $473,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Western Financial Corp CA boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 63.4% in the third quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 2,329 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,065,000 after acquiring an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC now owns 2,539 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,251,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Little House Capital LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 12.5% during the third quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 3,425 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,037,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,323 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $9,152,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.3 %

COST stock opened at $886.77 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $889.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $835.23. The stock has a market cap of $393.14 billion, a PE ratio of 54.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.48 and a beta of 0.80. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $540.23 and a fifty-two week high of $923.83.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.74 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,409.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,671,983.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,224 shares of company stock valued at $9,974,973. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Melius Research started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price target for the company. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $890.07.

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.