Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Acquired by RB Capital Management LLC

RB Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 17,338 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up 3.3% of RB Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. RB Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $11,444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Steph & Co. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Gordon Haskett downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $800.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $694.48.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded down $0.68 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $722.22. 1,571,512 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,032,143. The stock has a market cap of $320.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.12, a P/E/G ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $730.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $669.72. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $476.75 and a 12-month high of $787.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

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.