Keynote Financial Services LLC Purchases Shares of 275 Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Keynote Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 275 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COST. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,628,694,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 61,693.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,105,124 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,049,630,000 after purchasing an additional 3,100,099 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at $510,353,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3,647.1% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 567,641 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $374,688,000 after acquiring an additional 552,492 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,360,168 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,640,940,000 after acquiring an additional 485,051 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on COST. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $920.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $905.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $805.46.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $848.53, for a total transaction of $1,272,795.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,327,041.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,350 shares of company stock valued at $2,837,131. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST traded up $5.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $822.08. 2,598,467 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,182,416. The company has a market cap of $364.45 billion, a PE ratio of 50.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.49 and a beta of 0.78. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $530.56 and a 52-week high of $896.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $843.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $771.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.43 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

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.