Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Purchased by Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 346.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,753 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,967 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.8% of Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $34,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 112.9% in the 2nd quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 1,135 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,124,000 after buying an additional 602 shares during the period. Convergence Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Convergence Financial LLC now owns 2,731 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,704,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 6,469 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,402,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC now owns 473 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Millennium Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.9% during the 2nd quarter. New Millennium Group LLC now owns 3,757 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,719,000 after purchasing an additional 699 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $935.03 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $871.71 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $414.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $938.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $969.33.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The firm had revenue of $86.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.15 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,333.00 to $1,418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,140.00 to $1,134.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,064.85.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Tiffany Marie Barbre sold 1,239 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $934.62, for a total value of $1,157,994.18. Following the transaction, the insider owned 5,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,817,966.10. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,222.10. The trade was a 20.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,920 shares of company stock worth $7,373,175. Company 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.