Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Has $654,000 Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 738 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 51 shares during the quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth about $48,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 73.5% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $58,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,636 shares of company stock valued at $11,238,510 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $943.80 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $562.01 and a 52-week high of $962.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $893.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $850.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $418.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.96, a PEG ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on COST. Truist Financial cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $880.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $1,000.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $905.30.

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.