Transform Wealth LLC Sells 5,895 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Transform Wealth LLC lessened its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 26.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,352 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 5,895 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 1.1% of Transform Wealth LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Transform Wealth LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $11,980,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $905.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $860.00 to $890.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $875.00 price objective (up from $800.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 2nd. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $890.00 to $940.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $756.85.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock traded up $1.45 on Friday, reaching $852.07. The company had a trading volume of 403,241 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,958,104. The stock has a market capitalization of $377.75 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 quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $524.63 and a one year high of $873.96. The business’s 50-day moving average is $796.35 and its 200 day moving average is $736.82.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.