GFS Advisors LLC Purchases 365 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

GFS Advisors LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 121.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 665 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 365 shares during the quarter. GFS Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $590,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.1% during the third quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 4,518 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,005,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 117,296 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $103,985,000 after acquiring an additional 4,389 shares during the period. Indie Asset Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 71.4% during the 3rd quarter. Indie Asset Partners LLC now owns 509 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $451,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Financial Advisors Inc now owns 1,670 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,480,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 35,636 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $31,592,000 after acquiring an additional 611 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,015,745. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,015,745. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock worth $11,238,510 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on COST shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $980.00 target price (up previously from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $905.30.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $877.31 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $388.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.95, a PEG ratio of 5.38 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $552.01 and a 12 month high of $923.83. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $892.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $844.92.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.86 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.00%.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.