Sterling Investment Counsel LLC Lowers Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Sterling Investment Counsel LLC decreased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 34.5% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,338 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 706 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 0.8% of Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Sterling Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,324,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bulwark Capital Corp acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 900.0% in the 1st quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. eCIO Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth about $48,000. Aspect Partners LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth about $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock opened at $915.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $953.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $971.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $405.95 billion, a PE ratio of 50.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.55 and a beta of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1 year low of $867.34 and a 1 year high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. 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%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total value of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,629,419.04. The trade was a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 7,981 shares of company stock worth $7,588,685. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on COST. Argus upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,130.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 26th. Daiwa Capital Markets reduced their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,067.19.

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.