Howard Capital Management Group LLC Sells 200 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Howard Capital Management Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 57,861 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 3.6% of Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $51,295,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 73.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at $50,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,409.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,224 shares of company stock valued at $9,974,973 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on COST. Melius Research began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley increased 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. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $890.07.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of COST stock opened at $885.29 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $888.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $831.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $540.23 and a twelve month high of $923.83. The company has a market capitalization of $392.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.85, a PEG ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion for 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 company’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.73 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.75%.

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.