Private Wealth Partners LLC Sells 144 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Private Wealth Partners LLC decreased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,677 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 144 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 2.2% of Private Wealth Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Private Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $25,530,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Valmark Advisers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 1,606 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,060,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $807,000. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC now owns 2,829 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,868,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Delta Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $255,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.6% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,781 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,176,000 after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly 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 SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST traded up $7.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $729.18. The stock had a trading volume of 1,524,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,663,722. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $476.75 and a 12 month high of $787.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $323.39 billion, a PE ratio of 47.69, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company’s 50-day moving average is $730.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $666.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.30 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price target on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $694.48.

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.