Liberty Capital Management Inc. Has $14.45 Million Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Liberty Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 16,301 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 111 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 3.2% of Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Liberty Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $14,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,916,118,000 after buying an additional 473,702 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.1% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,802,147,000 after purchasing an additional 285,533 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.5% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,650,562 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,102,941,000 after purchasing an additional 88,550 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 28.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,538,078 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,307,363,000 after buying an additional 338,780 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 99,208.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,474,733 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,253,508,000 after buying an additional 1,473,248 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $899.17 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $540.23 and a 52 week high of $923.83. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $891.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $836.93. The stock has a market cap of $398.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.71, a P/E/G ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.86 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on COST. Gordon Haskett raised Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $955.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Truist Financial cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $894.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,091,512.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,220 shares of company stock worth $9,971,643. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.