Retirement Guys Formula LLC Has $2.72 Million Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Retirement Guys Formula LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 8.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,874 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 1.3% of Retirement Guys Formula LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Retirement Guys Formula LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of COST opened at $1,001.92 on Wednesday. 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 cap of $444.33 billion, a PE ratio of 56.83, a PEG ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $793.00 and a 1 year high of $1,078.24. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,003.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $981.25.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share (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 return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.78 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,647 shares of company stock worth $10,530,961 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $975.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Loop Capital lowered their target price 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, Evercore ISI cut their target price 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,034.79.

About Costco Wholesale

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.