Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC decreased its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,230 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 40 shares during the quarter. Tounjian Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of COST. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 900.0% in the first quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Aspect Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $952.07 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $867.16 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $422.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.00, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $959.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $973.54.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Erste Group Bank cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Loop Capital cut their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,056.67.

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.