Wright Investors Service Inc. Sells 380 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Wright Investors Service Inc. lowered its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 13.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,361 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 380 shares during the quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after acquiring an additional 455,043 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,901,249,000 after acquiring an additional 252,118 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after acquiring an additional 149,209 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after acquiring an additional 8,152,528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,182,316,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,048.78 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $793.00 and a 52-week high of $1,078.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $983.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $975.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $465.33 billion, a PE ratio of 61.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.78 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,035.32.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total value of $3,924,280.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.