Alerus Financial NA Reduces Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Alerus Financial NA cut its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 799 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 20 shares during the period. Alerus Financial NA’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $708,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.1% during the second quarter. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc now owns 746 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $634,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at about $262,000. Sage Capital Advisors llc increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 8,637 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,342,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC now owns 14,226 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $12,092,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $908.81.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. This represents a 27.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 30.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $971.88 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $907.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $872.68. The company has a market capitalization of $430.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.65, a P/E/G ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $582.83 and a 1 year high of $976.30.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The business had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.00%.

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.