Martin Investment Management LLC Has $423,000 Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Martin Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 8.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 477 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 45 shares during the period. Martin Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $423,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth about $48,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 73.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at about $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total value of $431,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,800 shares in the company, valued at $20,560,344. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,636 shares of company stock valued at $11,238,510 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $886.07 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a market cap of $392.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.47, a PEG ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $892.07 and a 200-day moving average of $847.07. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $560.13 and a 1-year high of $923.83.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.86 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on COST. Roth Mkm raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $935.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $905.30.

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.