Highland Capital Management LLC Boosts Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Highland Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,921 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,107 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 2.0% of Highland Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $33,933,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 1,763 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,164,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 21,514 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $14,201,000 after buying an additional 2,909 shares during the last quarter. Zhang Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 1,010 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $740,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,867 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,346,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 27,902 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,418,000 after buying an additional 1,627 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $1.65 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $879.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,305,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,967,249. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $530.56 and a one year high of $896.67. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $851.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $789.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $389.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.78.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The business had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on COST. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $925.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $970.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $824.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total transaction of $431,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,560,344. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,970 shares of company stock worth $4,249,526 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.