Consolidated Capital Management LLC Sells 23 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Consolidated Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,903 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 23 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 3.5% of Consolidated Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Consolidated Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $8,420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,717,744,000 after buying an additional 8,152,528 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $5,182,316,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $95,452,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,817,573,000 after purchasing an additional 587,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,668,069,000 after purchasing an additional 455,043 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction of $3,008,310.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,705,164.11. This represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,496,950. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Loop Capital cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $992.18 on Tuesday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $793.00 and a twelve month high of $1,078.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $440.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.28, a P/E/G ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,005.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $981.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm 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 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The firm’s quarterly 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. On average, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 29.50%.

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.