Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. Acquires Shares of 1,670 Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,670 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,419,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COST. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Argus boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $844.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of COST opened at $906.98 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $864.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $811.25. 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 12-month low of $540.23 and a 12-month high of $923.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $402.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.19, a P/E/G ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. 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.