Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stake Raised by Kowal Investment Group LLC

Kowal Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 954 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Kowal Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $699,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Horizon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth about $202,000. Diversified Trust Co increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 6,547 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,797,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 146.7% in the 1st quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,632 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,661,000 after purchasing an additional 2,160 shares during the last quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 4,431 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,246,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chapin Davis Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Chapin Davis Inc. now owns 767 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $845.67 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $801.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $740.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $524.63 and a 12 month high of $873.96. The company has a market capitalization of $374.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.40, a P/E/G ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.78.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $58.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.43 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.96 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on COST. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $777.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $875.00 price objective (up previously from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Argus increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $756.85.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.