Bedell Frazier Investment Counseling LLC reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST – Free Report) by 4.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,815 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 85 shares during the quarter. Bedell Frazier Investment Counseling LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $977,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at $22,359,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, 25 LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at $44,000. 66.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Costco Wholesale Price Performance
Shares of COST traded up $9.38 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $608.46. 645,721 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,782,640. The stock has a market cap of $269.39 billion, a PE ratio of 42.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $570.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $550.17. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $447.90 and a 12 month high of $608.72.
Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 26th. The retailer reported $4.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.79 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $78.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.72 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.10% and a net margin of 2.60%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $4.20 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.71 EPS for the current year.
Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 3rd were given a dividend of $1.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 2nd. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.81%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several brokerages have recently issued reports on COST. Argus raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $630.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 29th. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $482.00 to $502.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $535.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 27th. Loop Capital increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $615.00 to $630.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $588.04.
Read Our Latest Analysis on COST
Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale
In related news, CFO Richard A. Galanti sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $565.57, for a total transaction of $1,131,140.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,914,008.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Richard A. Galanti sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $565.57, for a total transaction of $1,131,140.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,914,008.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $557.75, for a total value of $2,509,875.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,785 shares in the company, valued at $6,015,333.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 19,265 shares of company stock valued at $10,797,118. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.
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.
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