Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Sells 13,186 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lowered its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 25.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,772 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 13,186 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.4% of Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $37,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,356,271 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,920,107,000 after purchasing an additional 711,560 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,325,416 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,141,062,000 after purchasing an additional 90,107 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,275,056 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,124,263,000 after buying an additional 150,844 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth about $5,692,035,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,332,009 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,097,127,000 after buying an additional 18,045 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of COST opened at $860.56 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.04. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52 week low of $851.40 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $382.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.09, a PEG ratio of 5.99 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $915.22 and a 200-day moving average of $949.15.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.27 by $0.07. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 29.35% and a net margin of 2.96%.The business had revenue of $67.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.04 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.85%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 2,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $930.13, for a total value of $2,232,312.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,860,260. This trade represents a 54.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,720 shares of company stock worth $9,010,257. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,130.00 to $1,050.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday. Gordon Haskett lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,025.00 to $1,027.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $992.70.

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.