Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 70.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 326 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 770 shares during the quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COST. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $207,000. Keel Point LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $845,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Prosperitas Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Prosperitas Financial LLC now owns 2,638 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,742,000 after buying an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 580 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $397,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, United Asset Strategies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 2,079 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,372,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Roth Mkm reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 price objective (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $920.00 to $915.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $875.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $925.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $824.50.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock traded down $6.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $870.59. 1,455,721 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,987,137. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $847.94 and a 200 day moving average of $780.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $530.56 and a 52-week high of $896.67. The company has a market cap of $385.96 billion, a PE ratio of 53.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 0.78.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results 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. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The business had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.43 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value 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 Costco Wholesale news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total value of $431,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,560,344. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,970 shares of company stock valued at $4,249,526. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.