Wealthspire Advisors LLC Acquires 3,349 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 32.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,824 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,349 shares during the period. Wealthspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $11,750,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at $32,000. Vima LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $916.00 on Friday. 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 one year low of $540.23 and a one year high of $923.83. The company has a market cap of $406.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.75, a PEG ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $861.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $805.62.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on COST. Citigroup upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $910.00 to $915.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $860.00 to $890.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Eight investment 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, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $844.52.

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.