Cetera Trust Company N.A Sells 35 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Cetera Trust Company N.A trimmed its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,009 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 35 shares during the period. Cetera Trust Company N.A’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $954,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COST. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,048,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,488 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,196,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. SRN Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,823,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Miramar Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $481,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $1,006.18 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $994.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $980.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $446.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.08, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $793.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS 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 given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. 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 dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.50%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,000 shares of company stock valued at $7,816,895. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Nine research 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, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,035.32.

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.