Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Bfsg LLC

Bfsg LLC lowered its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,972 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 75 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 1.2% of Bfsg LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $8,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Acas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Acas LLC now owns 2,819 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,861,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 7,780 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,129,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the period. Madison Park Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $2,017,000. Private Management Group Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 974 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $643,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, Cumberland Partners Ltd increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 54,974 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $36,287,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. StockNews.com cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Gordon Haskett lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $694.48.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded down $6.55 on Thursday, reaching $716.18. 465,556 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,047,029. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $476.75 and a fifty-two week high of $787.08. The company has a 50 day moving average of $730.36 and a 200 day moving average of $664.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $317.63 billion, a PE ratio of 46.77, a P/E/G ratio of 4.81 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $58.44 billion during 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 company’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.30 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. 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 boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,228,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.