Hudson Value Partners LLC Acquires 568 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 2.8% of Hudson Value Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Hudson Value Partners LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $7,133,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,371 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,004,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.3% during the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,719 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,655,000 after acquiring an additional 1,408 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 47.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,507 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,232,000 after purchasing an additional 2,757 shares during the period. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth approximately $219,000. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the first quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 38,814 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $28,436,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on COST. BMO Capital Markets reiterated 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $905.30.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $913.93 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $404.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.16, a P/E/G ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $891.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $848.69. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $562.01 and a 52-week high of $923.83. 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 (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. 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 business earned $4.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,091,512.30. 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 90 days, insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock valued at $11,238,510. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.