Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Chesley Taft & Associates LLC

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC decreased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 70,791 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,112 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for 3.0% of Chesley Taft & Associates LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $62,758,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 73.5% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $873.59 on Tuesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $540.23 and a 1 year high of $923.83. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $875.41 and its 200-day moving average is $822.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $387.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.13, a PEG ratio of 5.34 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.86 earnings per share. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,174 shares of company stock worth $7,097,624 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on COST. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $980.00 price objective (up previously from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $883.04.

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.