Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. Boosts Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 25.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,075 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 422 shares during the period. Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,764,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Vima LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $875.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Gordon Haskett raised Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $970.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $824.50.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,350 shares of company stock valued at $2,837,131 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $1.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $864.82. 1,464,618 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,995,136. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market cap of $383.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.32, a P/E/G ratio of 5.49 and a beta of 0.78. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $530.56 and a 1 year high of $896.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $845.93 and a 200 day moving average of $778.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.43 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.