Capital Market Strategies LLC Buys 101 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Capital Market Strategies LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,168 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 1.7% of Capital Market Strategies LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Capital Market Strategies LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $875.67 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $540.23 and a 12 month high of $923.83. The stock has a market cap of $388.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.25, a PEG ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $874.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $820.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given 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 (DPR) is 28.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on COST shares. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $955.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. 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. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $883.04.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,671,983.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,174 shares of company stock valued at $7,097,624 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale 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.