LGT Financial Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

LGT Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 24.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 187 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. LGT Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $159,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,916,118,000 after acquiring an additional 473,702 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,628,694,000. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 8.1% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,802,147,000 after purchasing an additional 285,533 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,790,935 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,842,241,000 after purchasing an additional 81,853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,278,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $844,126,000 after purchasing an additional 316,426 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the business’s 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 owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related 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 completion of the sale, 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total transaction of $431,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,800 shares in the company, valued at $20,560,344. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $970.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Argus raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $824.50.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.5 %

COST stock opened at $885.98 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $392.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $856.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $798.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $540.18 and a 12 month high of $918.93.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

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.