Elite Wealth Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Elite Wealth Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,853 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 537 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.3% of Elite Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Elite Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,524,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. United Bank boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 5,254 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,026,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 33.6% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 383,691 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $220,948,000 after acquiring an additional 96,566 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 87.1% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 232 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Bridgefront Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth approximately $333,000. Finally, Next Century Growth Investors LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC now owns 3,414 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,965,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of COST traded down $3.25 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $712.72. 461,315 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,088,803. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $730.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $658.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $476.75 and a 12-month high of $787.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $316.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.79, a P/E/G ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Gordon Haskett cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $620.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $691.28.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total value of $1,700,825.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,020,750.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total value of $1,700,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,020,750.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director W Craig Jelinek sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $685.93, for a total transaction of $5,487,440.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 216,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $148,306,297.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,442 shares of company stock valued at $9,303,768 in the last three months. Corporate 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.