V Square Quantitative Management LLC Raises Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 397.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,209 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 966 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in COST. Perpetual Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.7% during the first quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 888 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Allied Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth approximately $210,000. Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 328.3% during the 1st quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 1,713 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,255,000 after acquiring an additional 1,313 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 37,398 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $27,398,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bennett Selby Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.9% in the first quarter. Bennett Selby Investments LP now owns 815 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $597,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $860.00 to $890.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $980.00 price target (up from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $890.07.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total transaction of $2,844,768.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,224 shares of company stock worth $9,974,973 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of COST opened at $889.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $540.23 and a 1-year high of $923.83. The stock has a market cap of $394.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.48 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $889.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $832.21.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.00%.

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.