Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by C WorldWide Group Holding A S

C WorldWide Group Holding A S trimmed its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 615,871 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 75,559 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 5.5% of C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. C WorldWide Group Holding A S owned about 0.14% of Costco Wholesale worth $406,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Steph & Co. increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded up $7.32 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $729.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,524,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,663,722. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $476.75 and a 52-week high of $787.08. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $730.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $666.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $323.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.81 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.30 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on COST shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $694.48.

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.