Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Bought by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 141.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,294 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 23,045 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $38,899,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,165,000 after acquiring an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 13.1% during the fourth 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. TruNorth Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 73.6% in the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Alaska Wealth Advisors increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 22.3% in the first quarter. Alaska Wealth Advisors now owns 637 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $603,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schear Investment Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the first quarter. Schear Investment Advisers LLC now owns 4,794 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,534,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $922.74 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $871.71 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.23. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $938.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $968.65. The stock has a market cap of $408.94 billion, a PE ratio of 50.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The company had revenue of $86.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,042.00 to $1,033.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,333.00 to $1,418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,063.88.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $935.68, for a total value of $2,526,336.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,851 shares in the company, valued at $6,410,343.68. The trade was a 28.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. This trade represents a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 7,920 shares of company stock worth $7,373,175. 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.