Scotia Capital Inc. Acquires 13,869 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Scotia Capital Inc. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 385,352 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 13,869 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 1.9% of Scotia Capital Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Scotia Capital Inc. owned about 0.09% of Costco Wholesale worth $353,103,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth $945,000. Wilson & Boucher Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.8% during the third quarter. Wilson & Boucher Capital Management LLC now owns 1,395 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Financial Avengers Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.7% during the third quarter. Financial Avengers Inc. now owns 301 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Chiron Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth approximately $3,115,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.1% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 6,675 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,917,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $965.19 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $702.00 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $984.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $948.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $428.24 billion, a PE ratio of 56.68, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price 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, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 4th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,025.79.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,600 shares of company stock valued at $5,215,915 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.