Financial Enhancement Group LLC Takes Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Financial Enhancement Group LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 268 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $262,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SRN Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,823,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Miramar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Peninsula Wealth LLC now owns 818 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bosun Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $583,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of COST stock opened at $986.54 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $1,004.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $981.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $437.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.96, a PEG ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.78 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total value of $2,028,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. The trade was a 19.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,034.79.

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.