Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Position Raised by GDS Wealth Management

GDS Wealth Management grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 89.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,150 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 544 shares during the quarter. GDS Wealth Management’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,019,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Connections Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 73.5% in the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 230.0% in the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $880.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $905.30.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST opened at $943.80 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $418.17 billion, a PE ratio of 56.96, a PEG ratio of 5.81 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. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $893.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $852.53. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $562.01 and a 1 year high of $962.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.86 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.00%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Costco Wholesale 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 transaction 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,636 shares of company stock worth $11,238,510. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.