Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is Wedbush Securities Inc.’s 4th Largest Position

Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 119,435 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,937 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 3.9% of Wedbush Securities Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $109,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 581,395 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $532,715,000 after purchasing an additional 18,407 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $402,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $154,371,000. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR now owns 2,019 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,850,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kidder Stephen W grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Kidder Stephen W now owns 269 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 5.2 %

NASDAQ:COST opened at $916.48 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $988.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $947.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $406.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.82, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $702.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. Equities research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 27.09%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total value of $1,034,011.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,242,687. The trade was a 8.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,600 shares of company stock valued at $5,215,915. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on COST. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,029.00.

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.