U S Wealth Group LLC. Makes New Investment in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

U S Wealth Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,912 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,668,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 2.0% of U S Wealth Group LLC.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after purchasing an additional 455,043 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,901,249,000 after buying an additional 252,118 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after purchasing an additional 149,209 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $5,182,316,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,715,685 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,404,571,000 after buying an additional 43,266 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $916.48 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $988.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $948.42. 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 company has a market cap of $406.63 billion, a PE ratio of 53.82, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $702.00 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,445,926.72. The trade was a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,600 shares of company stock worth $5,215,915 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 price target (up previously from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,029.00.

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.