Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC Trims Stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC lessened its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,107 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 48 shares during the quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 900.0% during the first quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 975.0% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 72.0% during the second quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth approximately $48,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of COST opened at $936.33 on Monday. 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 $414.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $949.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $971.56. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a twelve month low of $867.34 and a twelve month high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.56%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,130.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $950.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, BTIG Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 price target on the stock. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,068.15.

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.