Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Bought by City State Bank

City State Bank increased its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,283 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. City State Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Radnor Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 1,492 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,411,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $286,000. Horizon Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. Horizon Wealth Management LLC now owns 298 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 17.0% during the 1st quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 495 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, First National Corp MA ADV lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 3,635 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,438,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $1,014.94 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $993.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $979.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $450.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $793.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 29.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on COST shares. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,035.32.

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.