TPG Advisors LLC Makes New $1 Million Investment in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

TPG Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,177 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,000,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,916,118,000 after acquiring an additional 473,702 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,802,147,000 after purchasing an additional 285,533 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,790,935 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,842,241,000 after buying an additional 81,853 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 28.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,538,078 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,307,363,000 after buying an additional 338,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 1,473,248 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $910.00 to $915.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Argus boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $844.52.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other 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 value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on 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 owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.7 %

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $906.98 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $540.23 and a 52-week high of $923.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $402.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.19, a PEG ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $864.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $810.90.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.75%.

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.