Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by US Bancorp DE

US Bancorp DE cut its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 552,314 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 4,659 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $489,652,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the first quarter. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,371 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,004,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 22.3% during the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,719 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,655,000 after purchasing an additional 1,408 shares during the last quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 28.5% in the 1st quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 51,817 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $37,963,000 after purchasing an additional 11,490 shares in the last quarter. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $626,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.8% during the first quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,849 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,018,000 after buying an additional 723 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $874.18 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $549.06 and a 12-month high of $923.83. The company has a market cap of $387.32 billion, a PE ratio of 52.76, a P/E/G ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $892.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $842.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.86 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total transaction of $431,940.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,560,344. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock valued at $11,238,510. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on COST. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $894.57.

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.