Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Acquires 16,967 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 32.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 68,976 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,967 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $63,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of COST stock opened at $930.49 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $413.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.64, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $990.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $944.64. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $697.27 and a one year high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The business 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,030.43.

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.