Chemistry Wealth Management LLC Has $2.78 Million Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Chemistry Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,939 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 22 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 0.6% of Chemistry Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Chemistry Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,780,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.3% in the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of COST stock opened at $1,014.94 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $450.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $793.00 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $993.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $979.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company 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 is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,035.32.

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.