Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Position Decreased by Samalin Investment Counsel LLC

Samalin Investment Counsel LLC decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 622 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 15 shares during the period. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $570,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,029.00.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $909.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $403.42 billion, a PE ratio of 53.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $697.27 and a 52 week high of $1,078.24. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $987.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $945.06.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.