Waverton Investment Management Ltd Sells 482 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Waverton Investment Management Ltd lowered its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,779 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 482 shares during the period. Waverton Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $13,985,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 73.5% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,136 shares of company stock worth $10,806,570. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on COST. TD Cowen raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $955.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Melius Research began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $935.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $905.30.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of COST stock opened at $932.88 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $893.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $852.53. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $572.24 and a 12-month high of $962.00. The firm has a market cap of $413.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.00%.

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.