Lyell Wealth Management LP Acquires 249 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Lyell Wealth Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 26,695 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 249 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 2.0% of Lyell Wealth Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Lyell Wealth Management LP’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $17,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of COST. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 4.3% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,134,947 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,901,040,000 after acquiring an additional 210,586 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 61,693.5% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,105,124 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,049,630,000 after purchasing an additional 3,100,099 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,689,514 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,519,468,000 after purchasing an additional 24,274 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,580,649 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,457,964,000 after purchasing an additional 28,259 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 18.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,088,673 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,180,016,000 after purchasing an additional 323,346 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.2 %

COST stock traded up $1.21 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $723.89. The company had a trading volume of 1,203,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,067,977. The stock has a market cap of $321.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.34, a PEG ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $730.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $664.46. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $476.75 and a 12 month high of $787.08.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $694.48.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total value of $1,072,245.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at $4,785,786.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the company’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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at $4,785,786.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total value of $1,043,258.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,967,534.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.