GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires New Shares in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 3,253 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,260,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for 0.6% of GAMMA Investing LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of COST. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter worth $477,000. Community Trust & Investment Co. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the third quarter. Community Trust & Investment Co. now owns 18,702 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,566,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,772 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,001,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,506 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,806,000 after buying an additional 369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guidance Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 1,258 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $711,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on COST. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $694.48.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $7.22 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $722.68. 1,174,884 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,079,065. The business has a 50-day moving average of $730.16 and a 200 day moving average of $662.88. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $476.75 and a fifty-two week high of $787.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $320.51 billion, a PE ratio of 47.21, a PEG ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.68%.

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.