Bristlecone Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Bristlecone Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,703 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,906 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for 2.2% of Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $26,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,165,000 after buying an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,099 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,877,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Trademark Financial Management LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Trademark Financial Management LLC now owns 817 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $773,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Monument Capital Management grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 850 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $804,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $924.16 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $943.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $971.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $409.57 billion, a PE ratio of 50.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. The business 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%.Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.15 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Erste Group Bank lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,130.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,333.00 to $1,418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,068.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $935.68, for a total value of $2,526,336.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,410,343.68. This trade represents a 28.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,920 shares of company stock valued at $7,373,175. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.