Investment Advisory Group LLC Sells 82 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Investment Advisory Group LLC reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 16.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 404 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 82 shares during the quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $382,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,182,316,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 74,796.3% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,521,893 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,394,465,000 after purchasing an additional 1,519,861 shares during the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $95,452,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,817,573,000 after purchasing an additional 587,303 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 8,000 shares of company stock worth $7,816,895. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,006.18 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business has a fifty day moving average of $994.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $980.11. The stock has a market cap of $446.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.08, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.78 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.