Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Purchased by Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,474 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,629 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $38,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 36.4% in the fourth quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 982 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $688,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,294 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $854,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Carret Asset Management LLC now owns 4,059 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,679,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Acas LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Acas LLC now owns 2,819 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,861,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 7,780 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,129,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on COST. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $800.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $694.48.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,785,786.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock traded up $1.21 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $723.89. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,203,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,067,977. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $476.75 and a 52 week high of $787.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $730.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $664.46. The stock has a market cap of $321.05 billion, a PE ratio of 47.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The company’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.68%.

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.