Aspiriant LLC Raises Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Aspiriant LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,327 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Aspiriant LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,705,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on COST. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $750.00 to $775.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $875.00 price objective (up from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $756.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $856.84 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $379.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.09, a PEG ratio of 5.66 and a beta of 0.79. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $522.10 and a 12 month high of $873.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $793.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $735.97.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly 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 business 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 quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.43 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th were paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.