Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Holdings Boosted by Shell Asset Management Co.

Shell Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 22.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,839 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,076 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.3% of Shell Asset Management Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $38,448,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Prasad Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 36.4% in the second quarter. Prasad Wealth Partners LLC now owns 970 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $960,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.7% in the second quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,664 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,617,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.5% in the second quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 4,655 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,608,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Roundview Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the second quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 17,260 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $17,086,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 23.8% in the second quarter. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,310,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Roth Capital set a $907.00 price target on Costco Wholesale and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Argus lifted their price target on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,160.00 to $1,050.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $990.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,067.19.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $914.80 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $952.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $971.76. 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 has a market capitalization of $405.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.24, a PEG ratio of 5.52 and a beta of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $867.34 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.15 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. The trade was a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 7,981 shares of company stock valued at $7,588,685. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

About Costco Wholesale

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.