Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Holdings Reduced by Bank of Stockton

Bank of Stockton reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,311 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 33 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 2.0% of Bank of Stockton’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Bank of Stockton’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,916,118,000 after acquiring an additional 473,702 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $3,628,694,000. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.1% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,802,147,000 after purchasing an additional 285,533 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,794,480 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,844,581,000 after purchasing an additional 85,398 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,657,994 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,754,489,000 after purchasing an additional 77,345 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’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 transaction of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,970 shares of company stock valued at $4,249,526. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $1.65 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $879.21. The stock had a trading volume of 1,305,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,967,249. The company has a market capitalization of $389.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.47, a PEG ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.78. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $530.56 and a 1-year high of $896.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $851.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $788.53.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.43 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on COST. StockNews.com raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 2nd. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 price target (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $925.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $824.50.

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.