Fielder Capital Group LLC Buys Shares of 1,272 Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Fielder Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,272 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $839,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 34,493 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $22,768,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 56,059 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $37,004,000 after purchasing an additional 2,473 shares during the last quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $2,701,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 34,702 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $24,116,000 after purchasing an additional 4,478 shares during the period. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 21,514 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $14,201,000 after buying an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, 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 value of $1,043,258.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,395 shares in the company, valued at $8,967,534.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $680.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $694.48.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 2.0 %

Costco Wholesale stock traded up $14.86 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $771.31. The stock had a trading volume of 1,893,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,036,381. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $730.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $674.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $476.75 and a one year high of $787.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $342.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.25, a P/E/G ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The company’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 posted $3.30 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio 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.