Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Raises Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,590 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 1.8% of Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,341,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,034.79.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. The trade was a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $974.90 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1-year low of $793.00 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a market cap of $432.35 billion, a PE ratio of 55.30, a P/E/G ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,002.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $981.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.50%.

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.