Harbor Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Harbor Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 457 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 22 shares during the quarter. Harbor Group Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $335,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $1.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $851.74. The company had a trading volume of 383,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,957,943. The company has a market capitalization of $377.60 billion, a PE ratio of 53.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.67 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $524.63 and a 1-year high of $873.96. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $796.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $736.82.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Gordon Haskett cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Loop Capital increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $940.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $875.00 target price (up previously from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $756.85.

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.