Clear Investment Research LLC Increases Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Clear Investment Research LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 38.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 76 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $76,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 900.0% in the first quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 975.0% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 72.0% in the second quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Finally, eCIO Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter worth approximately $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST opened at $920.18 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $867.34 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. The stock has a market cap of $407.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.53, a PEG ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s 50 day moving average is $940.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $970.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The company had revenue of $86.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $86.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.15 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Argus increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $950.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Daiwa Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $990.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,068.15.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,700 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $935.68, for a total value of $2,526,336.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,410,343.68. The trade was a 28.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,920 shares of company stock valued at $7,373,175. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.