Provident Trust Co. Reduces Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Provident Trust Co. lowered its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 814,090 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 22,525 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 11.0% of Provident Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Provident Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $537,365,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Steph & Co. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ COST traded up $7.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $729.18. 1,524,431 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,663,722. The stock has a market capitalization of $323.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.81 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $476.75 and a 1 year high of $787.08. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $730.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $666.04.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Roth Mkm raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $800.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $694.48.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale 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.