Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Peterson Wealth Management

Peterson Wealth Management cut its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 29.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,034 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,068 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 3.0% of Peterson Wealth Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Peterson Wealth Management’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 200.0% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST traded up $9.71 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $855.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,395,485 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,735,517. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $516.54 and a 12 month high of $856.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $379.35 billion, a PE ratio of 53.02, a PEG ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company’s 50-day moving average is $774.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $721.45.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The company had revenue of $58.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.43 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $845.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Barclays increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $700.00 to $765.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $751.85.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.