WoodTrust Financial Corp Boosts Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

WoodTrust Financial Corp increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,872 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 2.5% of WoodTrust Financial Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. WoodTrust Financial Corp’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $17,617,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Jackson Square Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.8% during the third quarter. Jackson Square Capital LLC now owns 7,731 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,854,000 after buying an additional 690 shares during the period. Ironsides Asset Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 20.5% in the third quarter. Ironsides Asset Advisors LLC now owns 441 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $391,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth $873,000. Graypoint LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 3,243 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,875,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Architects LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Architects LLC now owns 1,341 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,189,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.0 %

COST stock opened at $899.25 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $891.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $848.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $398.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $562.01 and a twelve month high of $923.83.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share 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 company posted $4.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.00%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This trade represents 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 Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock worth $11,238,510. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $860.00 to $890.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $980.00 target price (up previously from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $905.30.

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.