Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,530 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,094 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $14,654,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COST. Certified Advisory Corp boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Certified Advisory Corp now owns 6,995 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,201,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $209,000. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.7% during the third quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,172 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,778,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. GenTrust LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,153 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,795,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stonebrook Private Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 1,396 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,238,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $964.01 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $901.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $864.82. The company has a market cap of $427.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.18, a PEG ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.80. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $582.83 and a 52 week high of $976.30.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.86 earnings per share. Research analysts predict 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 was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Truist Financial lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Loop Capital increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $908.81.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. This trade represents a 27.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,016 shares of company stock worth $9,826,115. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale 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.