Midwest Professional Planners LTD. Purchases 190 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Midwest Professional Planners LTD. increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,038 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 190 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 1.9% of Midwest Professional Planners LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Midwest Professional Planners LTD.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,449,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $890.62 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $990.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $944.14. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $697.27 and a twelve month high of $1,078.24. The stock has a market cap of $395.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.30, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Raymond James upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Loop Capital cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,030.43.

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.