Cary Street Partners Financial LLC Sells 814 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Cary Street Partners Financial LLC cut its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,259 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 814 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.7% of Cary Street Partners Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $22,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Aspect Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total value of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. The trade was a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,472,510 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $955.37 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $982.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $984.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market cap of $423.68 billion, a PE ratio of 54.19, a P/E/G ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 0.96. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective 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. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of 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, Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,037.48.

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.