FCG Investment Co Sells 690 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

FCG Investment Co trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 23.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,307 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 690 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 1.4% of FCG Investment Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. FCG Investment Co’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,690,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of COST. Enterprise Financial Services Corp grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 892 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $589,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC now owns 1,535 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,125,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 4,472 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,276,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the first quarter. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,371 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,004,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Financial Services LTD. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $574,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $860.00 to $890.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Argus raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $875.00 target price (up from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and set a $676.00 price target (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $758.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST opened at $862.66 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $812.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $745.22. The company has a market cap of $382.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.70 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $524.63 and a 52-week high of $873.96.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The business had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.43 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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