Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 85,210 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 371 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $84,352,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,165,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,628 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,160,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 289 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 3,432 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $930.01 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $412.16 billion, a PE ratio of 51.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.98. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $952.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $971.77. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $867.34 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $86.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The company’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.15 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,222.10. This trade represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 7,981 shares of company stock worth $7,588,685. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,042.00 to $1,033.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 26th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Argus raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,066.23.

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.