Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT Has $128.70 Million Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT decreased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 151,414 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,104 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 2.3% of Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $128,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Vima LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST opened at $897.27 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $540.23 and a 52-week high of $923.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $397.79 billion, a PE ratio of 55.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $862.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $808.65.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $970.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $844.52.

Costco Wholesale 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.