Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST is Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc.’s 9th Largest Position

Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc. reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,152 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 251 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 1.0% of Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Quantum Financial Planning Services Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,130,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,165,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,628 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,160,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,530 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,448,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 147,961 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $139,936,000 after purchasing an additional 10,639 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST opened at $930.01 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $412.16 billion, a PE ratio of 51.07, a P/E/G ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.34 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $952.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $972.00.

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

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,333.00 to $1,418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,130.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,042.00 to $1,033.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $950.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Nineteen 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 company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,066.23.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.