Retirement Planning Group LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Retirement Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 43.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,915 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 14,588 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 2.1% of Retirement Planning Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Retirement Planning Group LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $45,317,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.3% during the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $1,051.69 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $991.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $978.09. The firm has a market cap of $466.62 billion, a PE ratio of 61.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The business’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.78 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total value of $1,034,011.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Mizuho initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $975.00 target price on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,035.32.

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.