Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. Has $2.66 Million Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,687 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 192 shares during the quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Corps Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the first quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 126 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 20.4% in 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. Finally, Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 866 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $819,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 2.9%

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $915.95 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $955.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $971.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company has a market cap of $406.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.30, a PEG ratio of 5.15 and a beta of 0.97. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a one year low of $867.16 and a one year high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 31.10%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.15 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 28.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,629,419.04. This represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Roth Capital set a $907.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,225.00 to $1,130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,137.00 to $1,140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,069.58.

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.