Warther Private Wealth LLC Increases Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Warther Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 772 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 0.2% of Warther Private Wealth LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Warther Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,048,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,488 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,196,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. SRN Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,823,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Miramar Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.2%

COST stock opened at $990.21 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $439.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,000.43 and a 200-day moving average of $981.10. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. 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 presently 29.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital cut their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,035.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction of $3,008,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.