Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 51,575 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 931 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 0.6% of Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $51,056,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Corps Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 126 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,638 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,499,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Viewpoint Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,543,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of COST stock opened at $936.33 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $414.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.42, a PEG ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.98. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $949.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $971.53. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1-year low of $867.34 and a 1-year high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.15 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS 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. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 28.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value 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. The trade was a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $990.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 29th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 price objective for the company. Erste Group Bank lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,225.00 to $1,130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,068.15.

About Costco Wholesale

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.