Savvy Advisors Inc. Has $8.14 Million Stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Savvy Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 71.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,791 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,665 shares during the period. Savvy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $8,137,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 72.0% in the second quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2,200.0% during the third quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $978.14 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $434.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.39, a PEG ratio of 5.12 and a beta of 1.01. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $844.06 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $918.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $931.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.07. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 29.35%. The firm had revenue of $67.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.04 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Javier Polit sold 558 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $862.89, for a total transaction of $481,492.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,792,849.10. This trade represents a 5.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $939.00, for a total transaction of $1,408,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 44,837 shares in the company, valued at $42,101,943. This trade represents a 3.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 6,915 shares of company stock worth $6,317,097 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on COST. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, February 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,218.00 to $1,171.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,155.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday. Twenty-two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,009.00.

Costco Wholesale Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a global chain of membership-only warehouse clubs that sell a wide array of merchandise in bulk at discounted prices. The company’s product mix includes groceries, fresh and frozen food, household goods, electronics, apparel, and seasonal items, augmented by its prominent private-label brand, Kirkland Signature. Costco’s business model centers on annual membership fees and high-volume, low-margin sales, designed to drive repeat purchasing and strong customer loyalty among both consumers and small-business buyers.

Beyond merchandise, Costco provides a range of ancillary services that complement its warehouses, including gasoline stations, pharmacy and optical services, hearing aid centers, photo services, and travel and insurance products.