Segment Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Segment Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,276 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 13 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up about 1.3% of Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $18,861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 65,380 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $57,960,000 after acquiring an additional 956 shares in the last quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the third quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,651 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,464,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.7% during the third quarter. Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. now owns 339 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Pictet North America Advisors SA now owns 637 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $565,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. now owns 6,961 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,143,000 after buying an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total transaction of $431,940.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,560,344. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,220 shares of company stock worth $9,971,643 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST opened at $899.17 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $540.23 and a 1-year high of $923.83. The stock has a market cap of $398.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.71, a P/E/G ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $891.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $836.93. 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 (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $894.57.

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.