Seaview Investment Managers LLC Makes New Investment in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Seaview Investment Managers LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 10,859 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $9,230,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 2.8% of Seaview Investment Managers LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Oak Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Oak Asset Management LLC now owns 4,396 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,737,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,518,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Bedel Financial Consulting Inc. now owns 995 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $729,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 790 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $671,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LifePro Asset Management raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 358 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on COST. Bank of America increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $875.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Barclays increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $955.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $844.52.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 2.3 %

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $896.49 on Tuesday. 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 1-year low of $540.23 and a 1-year high of $918.93. The company has a market cap of $397.44 billion, a PE ratio of 55.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $858.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $801.88.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. 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 presently 28.75%.

Costco Wholesale 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.