Fisher Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,794,480 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 85,398 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises 0.9% of Fisher Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned about 0.63% of Costco Wholesale worth $1,844,581,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Howard Financial Services LTD. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 870 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $574,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. First National Corp MA ADV raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 3,098 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,045,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Morton Capital Management LLC CA raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Morton Capital Management LLC CA now owns 1,564 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Insight Advisors LLC PA increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Insight Advisors LLC PA now owns 2,736 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,807,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, Optas LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 2,383 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,573,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of COST traded up $6.57 on Thursday, hitting $728.79. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 406,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,020,137. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $730.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $670.09. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $476.75 and a fifty-two week high of $787.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $323.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.61, a P/E/G ratio of 4.81 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 for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 30.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of a number of research reports. 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. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $694.48.

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.