Orleans Capital Management Corp LA Reduces Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Orleans Capital Management Corp LA lessened its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,256 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 20 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 3.4% of Orleans Capital Management Corp LA’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Orleans Capital Management Corp LA’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $5,318,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strong Tower Advisory Services boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 7.9% in the first quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,867 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,346,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 52.1% in the second quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 7,645 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,499,000 after acquiring an additional 2,620 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.8% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,003,000 after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 30.8% during the second quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,596 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,319 shares during the period. Finally, Aspiriant LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.1% during the first quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 2,327 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of COST stock opened at $886.52 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $871.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $818.37. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $540.23 and a 1-year high of $923.83. 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 company has a market cap of $393.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.93, a PEG ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 16.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Truist Financial downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $883.04.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.