Spirepoint Private Client LLC Decreases Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Spirepoint Private Client LLC cut its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 59.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,952 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,341 shares during the quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 2.5%

COST stock opened at $1,004.48 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,003.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $981.11. The stock has a market cap of $445.47 billion, a PE ratio of 56.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.78 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,647 shares of company stock worth $10,530,961. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.