Capital Investment Counsel Inc Cuts Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Capital Investment Counsel Inc lessened its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,733 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 623 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 8.9% of Capital Investment Counsel Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Capital Investment Counsel Inc’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $67,052,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,165,000 after acquiring an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 2.9% in the first quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,470 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,173,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the first quarter. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,460 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,327,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altman Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.2% during the first quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,099,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST opened at $914.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $936.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $967.41. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $871.71 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The company has a market cap of $405.07 billion, a PE ratio of 50.19, a P/E/G ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 30.09%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.15 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.56%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $935.68, for a total value of $2,526,336.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,410,343.68. This trade represents a 28.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 2,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $930.13, for a total transaction of $2,232,312.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,860,260. This trade represents a 54.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 10,320 shares of company stock valued at $9,605,487 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Argus raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. BTIG Research started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 price target for the company. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,063.88.

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.