Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is YHB Investment Advisors Inc.’s 4th Largest Position

YHB Investment Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,480 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 901 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 3.3% of YHB Investment Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position. YHB Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $39,433,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Register Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth $89,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 5,168 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,787,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Tsfg LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 834 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $611,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 38.9% during the first quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC now owns 1,053 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.6% during the first quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,028 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,710,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $980.00 price objective (up from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $894.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total transaction of $431,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,800 shares in the company, valued at $20,560,344. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the firm’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 sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total value of $431,940.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,800 shares in the company, valued at $20,560,344. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock worth $11,238,510. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST opened at $893.42 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $891.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $836.93. The firm has a market cap of $395.85 billion, a PE ratio of 53.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 0.80. 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 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.00%.

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

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.