Burling Wealth Partners LLC Makes New $3.94 Million Investment in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Burling Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 4,297 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,937,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,495,211.65. The trade was a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $975.84 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $714.41 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $969.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $954.22. The stock has a market cap of $432.96 billion, a PE ratio of 57.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The company had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 30.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,045.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,024.03.

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.