Security Financial Services INC. Increases Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Security Financial Services INC. grew its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 10.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 414 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Security Financial Services INC.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $875.00 target price (up previously from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $752.96.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $842.34 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $521.26 and a 52-week high of $873.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $373.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.56, a P/E/G ratio of 5.70 and a beta of 0.79. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $788.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $732.58.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The business’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.43 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

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.