Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,448 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 74 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 1.7% of Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,534,464,000 after buying an additional 7,364,453 shares during the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 99,208.6% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,474,733 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,253,508,000 after acquiring an additional 1,473,248 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 287.3% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 836,247 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $710,802,000 after acquiring an additional 620,341 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 51,747.5% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 619,578 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,266,000 after purchasing an additional 618,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,916,118,000 after purchasing an additional 473,702 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,015,745. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock valued at $11,238,510. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Roth Mkm raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $855.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $894.57.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $891.22 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $540.23 and a fifty-two week high of $923.83. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $891.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $837.33. The stock has a market cap of $394.87 billion, a PE ratio of 53.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.50 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.00%.

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.