Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 41 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 13.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 269 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 41 shares during the quarter. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,547 shares of company stock worth $11,361,265. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:COST opened at $980.29 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $434.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.60, a PEG ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,002.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $981.03.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,034.79.

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.