Navalign LLC Acquires 1,020 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)

Navalign LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 126.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,827 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Navalign LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,728,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after purchasing an additional 455,043 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after purchasing an additional 149,209 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 106,402.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,160,190 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,717,744,000 after purchasing an additional 8,152,528 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $5,182,316,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of COST opened at $992.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1,005.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $981.65. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $793.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. 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 cap of $440.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.28, a PEG ratio of 6.14 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.78 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $975.00 price target on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,034.79.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 8,210 shares in the company, valued at $8,326,171.50. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock valued at $9,496,950. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.