Atala Financial Inc Takes Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,181 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,082,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. LBP AM SA lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 16,246 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $14,886,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $30,734,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $6,605,000. Phillips Financial Management LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Phillips Financial Management LLC now owns 310 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Impact Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $1,574,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $890.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $395.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $990.05 and its 200-day moving average is $944.14. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $697.27 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,030.43.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was 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 directly owns 41,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,242,687. The trade was a 8.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal 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.