Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 34 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 921 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $817,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Radnor Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 63.1% during the 3rd quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 2,352 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,085,000 after buying an additional 910 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,378 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,108,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,847 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,638,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 719 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Balentine LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth $1,591,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $890.17 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $394.41 billion, a PE ratio of 53.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $560.13 and a 1-year high of $923.83. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $891.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $848.34.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.86 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,512.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 12,636 shares of company stock worth $11,238,510. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Truist Financial lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Melius Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective for the company. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,065.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $905.30.

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.