Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Purchases 416 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,780 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 416 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 0.8% of Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $5,129,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,967,534.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total transaction of $1,043,258.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $7.22 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $722.68. 1,174,884 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,079,065. The stock has a market capitalization of $320.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $730.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $664.04. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $476.75 and a 12 month high of $787.08.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 30.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Gordon Haskett cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $680.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $694.48.

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.